One of the CIA-trained proxy forces was called “The Brigade for purging slaves and black skin”- which sought to ethnically cleanse the Tawurgha area, was supported by NATO strikes from the air and on the ground by U.S. Special Forces. Tawergha was mostly inhabited by black Libyans, due to its 19-century origins as a transit town in the slave trade.

There was horrific video footage showing public lynchings of black soldiers from the Libyan army, migrant workers from other African countries, and any darker skinned Libyan civilians.

Human Rights Watch reported: “Dark skinned Libyans and sub-Saharan Africans face particular risks because [the CIA-trained proxy forces] consider them pro-Gaddafi mercenaries.” Amnesty International also reported on the cruel detention of Libyans and other Africans by the CIA-trained proxy forces.

The myth of black mercenaries fighting to protect Libya from foreign occupiers was spread by NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu, British Defense Minister Liam Fox, and other Western leaders. This myth was useful to claim that the NATO invasion and occupation of Libya was actually a war “between Gaddafi and the Libyan people”, as if he had no domestic support at all – a colossal fabrication.

What did Gaddafi really do for Libyans, and African people as a whole? He openly challenged AFRICOM’s intent to establish U.S. military bases in Africa, and often backed national liberation movements, including that against Apartheid South Africa as a close ally of Mandela. He oversaw a range of projects intended to lessen African dependency on the West, and challenge the legacy of Western colonialism. By challenging Western military and economic domination over the whole of Africa, he was a rival to U.S. interests in real terms. U.S. companies such as ConocoPhillips, Marathon and Hess Energy have already profited from new oil contracts in Libya.

What does it mean when the West slanders an African head of state who promotes African economic independence, funds public housing and subsidizes incomes? It means that he is progressive. Western imperialism is trying to impose a dictatorship of capital on Africa. It must be stopped.

#ChicagoIL #Chicago #Libya #Slavery #Africa

Minneapolis, MN – A coalition of Minneapolis/Saint Paul area groups will hold a protest this Saturday, Aug. 6. The protest was called to mark the 71st anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with a call for an end to the endless series of U.S. wars and military interventions.

The protest will come just days after the start of what appears to be a new campaign of U.S. airstrikes in Libya.

The protest will be held 1 p.m., at Mayday Plaza, at the intersection of 3rd Street and Cedar Avenue in the West Bank neighborhood of Minneapolis.

At 2 p.m. there will be a program at Mayday Books with Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi-American peace activist who works in Iraq with the Muslim Peacemaker Teams. Mayday Books is located at 301 Cedar Avenue S in Minneapolis.

The protest is being organized under the calls “Say no to endless war. Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Somalia, Yemen: End U.S. wars, interventions & drone strikes. Funds for human needs, not wars & nuclear weapons. Say NO to racism & Islamophobia.”

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “As the U.S. launches a new wave of airstrikes, this time in Libya, the U.S. is involved in wars and interventions across the Middle East. In recent weeks the U.S. has announced plans to send more troops to Iraq and has announced that a large contingent of troops will be kept in Afghanistan.”

The statement continues, “This is all being done in the name of fighting terrorism. But, after years of U.S. bombs, troops, weapons and meddling, does anyone believe more of the same will make things better for the people of the region?”

The statement continues, “We will mark the 71st anniversary of the atomic bombings with a call for an end to U.S. wars and interventions.”

The new U.S. bombing of targets in Libya started on Aug. 1. Aircraft and drones struck targets in the port city of Sirte.

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) said Monday that she was “deeply concerned about the expansion of U.S. airstrikes in Libya. The U.S. military continues to become more engaged in the Middle East, despite the lack of a Congressional debate or specific authorization.”

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) called the Aug. 6 protest.

The protest is endorsed by Anti-War Committee, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Mayday Bookstore, Military Families Speak Out (MN Chapter), Minnesota Cuba Committee, Minnesotans Against Islamophobia, St. Joan of Arc Peacemakers, St. Paul Eastsiders for Peace, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Socialist Action, Veterans for Peace, Welfare Rights Committee, Women Against Military Madness, Workers International League

For more information 612 275-2720 or 612 827-5364.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Nagasaki #Hiroshima #Libya

Milwaukee, WI – Dozens protested the U.S. and NATO war in Libya in downtown here, Aug. 27. The message was “U.S./NATO out of Libya now!”

One protester spoke about the Wisconsin National Guard taking part in the war on Libya. Another speaker from the Committee to Stop FBI Repression gave an update about the attacks on Carlos Montes and the other 23 international solidarity activists. “These activists are under attack because the ruling class doesn't like people stirring up opposition to their greed. Defending these activists helps us build opposition to the U.S. in Libya.”

The next day, many of those protesting attended an organizing conference in Chicago to plan protests against NATO and the G8 in Chicago in May 2012.

#MilwaukeeWI #AntiwarMovement #NATO #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #Libya #LibyaWar

The Freedom Road Socialist Organization pointed out some of the contradictions at work in a statement on March 17, the day of the UN Security Council vote to intervene in Libya: “Since day one of the crisis in Libya, the corporate media has been in motion, preparing public opinion for war with Libya. Likewise, since the beginning of the crisis, the western, imperialist powers have been maneuvering militarily to take advantage of the situation. Meanwhile, it is clear that the rebels in Libya are not of one mind. Some of their leaders are tied to the old CIA-funded National Front for the Salvation of Libya, which would like to see Libya’s oil industry completely privatized, meaning an end to the current free health care and free education programs enjoyed by the Libyan people. Some are monarchists and others who wish to turn back the clock on Libyan social progress. Undoubtedly, war with Libya will mean the most reactionary forces among the rebels coming to power if Gaddafi’s government is defeated by the guns and bombs of the west.” We are now seeing this nightmare approaching reality.

The reasons behind this war are both economic and geostrategic. On the one hand, the Western powers wish to divide among themselves Libya's vast oil wealth, the greatest in Africa. “We don't have a problem with Western countries like the Italians, French and UK companies. But we may have some political issues with Russia, China and Brazil,” Abdeljalil Mayouf, information manager at Libyan rebel oil firm AGOCO, told Reuters. The National Transitional Council led by Mustafa Abdel-Jalil has likewise been clear that it wants very much to align itself with the U.S. and the other Western powers. On the other hand, the Western powers want to strengthen their dominance in the region, which is threatened by the political unrest that has swept North Africa and the Middle East since the beginning of the “Arab Spring”. If US/NATO forces are successful in Libya, they will be in a much better position step up their attempts to topple the government of Syria.

To give cover to this war of aggression and domination, they are cynically manipulating the political discontent of a section of the Libyan people, and utilizing bought and paid for puppets. And yet despite the intense attacks, including thousands of bombing raids, drone attacks, commando operations, and global economic sanctions, the patriotic people alongside Gaddafi's government have resisted heroically and will certainly continue to do so. That they have held on for as long as they have is a tribute to the Libyans’ will to fight, their tenacity in the face of adversity, and the real commitment to maintaining national independence.

This conflict has now sharpened to the utmost degree, and at this point it must be clear that there are but two sides. On one side stand the forces of colonial domination, represented by all the might of the great powers—the U.S., the U.K, France and Italy. On the other side stands all who steadfastly oppose the forces of Empire. Despite whatever strengths of weaknesses the patriotic forces in Libya may have, progressive people everywhere should stand on the side of an independent Libya, for self-determination and against national oppression and domination.

#TripoliLibya #Tripoli #Editorials #NATO #Gadhafi #Libya #LibyaWar #Africa

Newark, NJ – Peace activist and former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney visited here July 28, speaking at a meeting of the People’s Organization for Progress. The room was packed as over 200 people turned out to hear her speak about her recent visit to Libya, the latest country to be victimized by NATO aggression.

At the beginning of the program McKinney was given an Award of Merit presented by local people’s activists. A motion was made and passed by acclamation to declare her an honorary member of the People’s Organization for Progress.

She began by noting that Newar