Bloomington, MN – On March 16, protesters held a march to the Bloomington facility of weapons manufacturer General Dynamics, to demand that the Minnesota State Board of Investment divests public funds from General Dynamics for its weapons trade with apartheid Israel. Israel has relied heavily on General Dynamics’ weapons for decades, including during its ongoing genocide against Gaza over the last five months.

The protest of 400 people started near the Penn-Lake Library with a rally followed by a march to General Dynamics building in Bloomington. General Dynamics is the world’s fifth largest weapons manufacturer, with an annual revenue of $38.5 billion. General Dynamics manufactures and sells military weapons and equipment – including armored fighting and robotic combat vehicles, tanks, artillery systems, aircraft guns and cybersecurity systems – and is currently the only company that produces the 155mm artillery shells that have been used by Israel in Gaza. These weapons have repeatedly been fired against Palestinian civilians, resulting in numerous casualties as well as mass destruction of homes and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools, and water and electric systems.

Students for Palestine Normandale, Bloomington Students for Palestine, and the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition organized the protest.

Michael Runyon, the founder of Students for Palestine Normandale, explained the reasoning behind the protest to the crowd, “This location is called a ‘Mission Systems’ location. They develop the technology behind the killing machines. They brag that they are the ‘brains behind the brawn.’ What that means is they are the brains behind the genocide.”

Audrey, a ninth-grader at Kennedy High School in Bloomington and a member of Bloomington Students for Palestine spoke to the crowd before marching, “More children have been killed in Gaza in the past four months than have been killed worldwide in the past four years of wars. How can Biden ask us to vote for him when he’s responsible for this mass murder? How can General Dynamics sit here pretending to be just a tech company when they're responsible for the deaths of so many children? Walz was at the Democratic fundraiser last night. How can he ask for money and have a fancy dinner when he doesn't divest from this genocide?”

She continued, “It’s important that students speak out about this because this is a youth issue. If you were born in Palestine in 2006, you’ve already lived through five Israeli assaults. Kids in Gaza aren’t thinking about going to college, they’re thinking about surviving the next week. Hoping to not starve to death. Hoping to not be bombed. Hoping that their families will survive.”

According to its most recent asset listings, the Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI) has invested over $31 million of the public pension funds it manages in General Dynamics. The MN Anti-War Committee is leading a campaign to get the SBI to divest its over $3 billion worth of investments from Israeli companies and weapons manufacturers.

Liz McLister, a member of the AWC, also spoke to the crowd, “What brings us to this particular site today? The SBI has funneled almost $37 million of Minnesotan taxpayer money into General Dynamics shares and securities.”

McLister continued, “Long before Israel's current gloves-off campaign, General Dynamics' weapons and equipment were terrorizing, maiming and killing Gazans. Shame! This company has spent years seeding death and destruction in occupied Palestine; along the U.S.-Mexico border; and elsewhere around the globe.”

The march went to General Dynamics’ “Mission Systems” facility on Queen Avenue to draw attention to their role in the rising death toll in Gaza.

#BloomingtonMN #GeneralDynamics #AntiWarCommittee #Palestine #StudentsforPalestineNormandale, #BloomingtonStudentsforPalestine #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – A coalition of Twin Cities peace and anti-war organizations held an anti-war protest October 9 to mark 20 years since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. The protest, held at Mayday Plaza in Minneapolis, also called for an end all forms of U.S. aggression.

Kim DeFranco, representing Women Against Military Madness and the Climate Justice Committee, welcomed the 50-plus people and explained the focus for the action, “Now is the time to end the U.S. obsession for endless wars. We demand to end all wars and all types of warfare. Bring all the troops home from everywhere, end all sanctions and stop all blockades and fund human needs now!” All the speakers addressed one of the central demands of an end to warfare, intervention and sanctions, and for human needs to be prioritized.

Misty Rowan, an activist with the Anti-War Committee, explained the significance of the role of sanctions as an act of war, “Sanctions are an act of war, and they need to be treated as such. They are cruel, and they are intended to cause harm, but unlike a drone strike, the damage done is so much more insidious than outright violence, and for that reason, so much less likely to make the nightly news. Sanctions are used to strangle countries economically and to put pressure on governments, but it is the ordinary people who ultimately pay the price. It is well documented that sanctions can cause more death and more suffering than an actual hot war, but they are sold to us as being less cruel, and more cost-effective.”

U.S. weapons and aid are another form of U.S. warfare. Mnar Adley, an outspoken Palestinian-American and editor of Mint Press News, spoke about the situation in occupied Palestine. “Muna and Mohammed El-Kurd, standing up to Israeli apartheid and the ethnic cleansing of their neighborhoods, are the real heroes of 2021,” she said. “Where are the Muna and Mohammed El-Kurds here in America, standing up in Congress, in the House, in the Senate – where are they? They do not exist. That's why we have to hold our elected officials accountable and rely on the strength and courage of ourselves.”

Ruben Joanem of the Haiti Justice Committee held U.S. imperialism responsible for the Haitian refugee crisis, saying of the July assassination of President Jovenal Moïse that “nothing happens there without the consent of the U.S. embassy.” Joanem continued, “We need to ask our representatives to put a moratorium on deportation of refugees from Haiti because the nation has collapsed as we know it. There is no infrastructure, there is no leadership, there is no administration in Port-au-Prince or elsewhere in Haiti. The images that you've seen of officers chasing children and women refugees is no different from the image of the officer kneeling on the neck of George Floyd. All we are asking for: we want to breathe. The right to breathe is the right to live.”

Several speakers also made the connection between the wars abroad and the war on oppressed nationalities at home. Kelly Thomas, a member of the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar, addressed the crowd to make this connection, “The people who are in the streets fighting for our lives, for our rights to freedom of speech, for literally clean drinking water, we are being attacked and targeted by police. We're being assaulted and arrested. Some of us were literally in court yesterday.”

Thomas continued, “Right now, the people with the most power are mostly people who have never experienced being traumatized by police. They don't know what being pepper sprayed or tear gassed feels like. They haven't seen the damage that rubber bullets do. They don't know the feeling of being jumpy at unexpected sounds, or watching traumatized community and loved ones spreading trauma because they don't have the safety they need to heal. They haven't had to try and sleep just feet away from police in order to hold ground. They are not interested in understanding the problem, they are not capable of understanding the problem, and they're not capable of caring about people with Black and brown skin.” Thomas encouraged participants to support their campaign for CPAC, a Civilian Police Accountability Council, in Minneapolis.

The Saturday protest was initiated by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition and was endorsed by the Anti-War Committee, Climate Justice Committee, Every Church a Peace Church, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Haiti Justice Committee of Minnesota, Mayday Books, Minnesota Cuba Committee, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Minnesota War Tax Resistance, Party for Socialism and Liberation, St. Joan of Arc/WAMM Peacemakers, St. Paul Eastside Neighbors for Peace, Socialist Action, Socialist Revolution, Students for a Democratic Society (UMN), Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Welfare Rights Committee, and Women Against Military Madness.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Afghanistan #PeoplesStruggles #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – Well over 50 people attended an emergency protest in Minneapolis on Saturday, February 27, to speak out against the Biden administration bombing of targets in Syria two days earlier.

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition initiated the call for the protest, which was endorsed by other organizations including the Anti-War Committee, Climate Justice Committee, Veterans for Peace and Women Against Military Madness.

Participants lined Cedar Avenue on the West Bank in Minneapolis with anti-war signs and banners. Most passersby showed support for the anti-war message.

At a closing rally Meredith Aby of the Anti-War Committee said, “We are here to oppose the Biden administration's bombing strike on Syria. This is a blatant violation of Syrian sovereignty. It is an escalation against Iran – which is in direct violation of the campaign promises that he made. With this airstrike, Biden is continuing Trump's aggressive foreign policy against Syria and Iran, now cloaked in tones of supposed ‘reasonability.’”

Kristin Dooley, director of Women Against Military Madness said, “For Biden, war trumps human needs. The people need funds to fight COVID, for jobs and housing, not more wars.”

Minneapolis area peace groups will be continuing to call actions against the endless series of U.S. wars.

One member of MPAC, the group that initiated the protest said, “Biden has already indicated that the U.S. will not fully withdraw from Afghanistan by the deadline set in the agreement signed last year. Now the escalation of bombing targets in Syria and the endless wars are the wars of empire, not specific political figures. The process to end these wars will take a massive outpouring of anti-war sentiment.”

#Minneapolis #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #Syria #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #Biden

The Minneapolis protesters will gather on Saturday, February 23 at 1 p.m. at Hennepin and Lagoon Avenues in the Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis. There will be signs and banners with the anti-intervention message.

The event is called under the themes: “U.S. Hands Off Venezuela – No Coup; No Sanctions – No U.S. War on Venezuela!”

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “The Trump administration is attempting to orchestrate a coup in Venezuela, including threats of direct U.S. military intervention. Venezuela has one of the largest oil reserves in the world and the second largest gold reserves, as well as diamonds and other minerals, resources that could make it the next target in the endless series of U.S. wars, interventions and 'regime change' operations.”

The statement continues, “Join the February 23 protest to say no to new wars and interventions.”

Planning for the Minneapolis event was initiated by Minnesota Peace Action Coalition and endorsed by a range of groups including: AFSCME Local 3800, Anti-War Committee, Every Church a Peace Church, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Haiti Justice Committee of Minnesota, Hands Off Honduras, Immigrant Movement for Justice, Mayday Books, Minnesota Caravan Solidarity / Minnesota en Solidaridad con la Caravana, Minnesota Cuba Committee, Minnesota War Tax Resistance, Party for Socialism and Liberation – Minneapolis, Progressive Coalition Minnesota, St. Joan of Arc Peacemakers, St. Paul Eastside Neighbors for Peace, Rise Up Times, Socialist Action, Students for a Democratic Society, Students for Revolutionary Socialism, Twin Cities Hands Off Venezuela, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Welfare Rights Committee, Women Against Military Madness, Workers World Party – Twin Cities, Workers International League, Veterans for Peace (Chapter 27).

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Venezuela #US #Americas #PeoplesStruggles #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #DonaldTrump #HandsOffVenezuela

Minneapolis, MN – More than 75 people rallied and marched through the Cedar Riverside neighborhood, October 21, as part of an demonstration organized by the MN Peace Action Coalition. The protest was a part of a nationally coordinated weekend of anti-war events in cities across the United States. The call for protests coincided with an anti-war protest to be held at the Pentagon that same day, organized by the Women's March on the Pentagon. The call for the Women's March on the Pentagon was timed to coincide with the anniversary of the October 1967 march against the U.S. war in Vietnam.

Stephanie Taylor, vice president of AFSCME 3800 and a member of the Anti-War Committee, addressed the rally, “Members of AFSCME 3800 are overwhelmingly women, and we’re glad the women’s movement and the anti-war movement are coming together in Washington this weekend. Working women and labor unions need to join together in demanding an end to war and U.S. imperialism. Women and children are the ones disproportionately impacted by overseas wars, and it’s our duty to stand with them in opposing imperialist aggression.”

Mike Madden, a longtime member of Veterans for Peace, spoke to what it means when people say “thank you for your service.” He said, “Please don’t thank me for my military service. The first year and a half of my enlistment coincide with the final year and a half of the American war in Vietnam. To the extent my service enabled or prolonged the war, it did more harm than good...Honoring a war hero has the effect of conferring the honor of the individual onto the war and its policy. But when a nation has committed an act of military aggression, it may lay not claim to military heroes. The honorable people are those who oppose the war, whether they wear the uniform or not.” He encouraged the crowd to continue their service and work for peace.

Other speakers included Gina VanArnam from the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar, Mary Beaudoin from Women Against Military Madness, Erika Zurawski from MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee, and Misty Rowan from the Anti-War Committee.

The group marched through the Cedar Riverside neighborhood, which is located next to the University of Minnesota and home to a large Somali population. Protesters chanted, “Refugees are welcome here” and demanded an end to U.S. attacks and war threats on Somalia, Afghanistan, Syria, Venezuela and Iran.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #PeoplesStruggles #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

The protest is organized under the call of “Stop the U.S. War in Afghanistan – Say NO to Endless War. Stop Endless U.S. Wars.”

The event will start on Friday, Oct. 5 at 5 p.m. in front of the offices of U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, 1200 South Washington Avenue in Minneapolis.

The Minneapolis protest is organized by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition.

The U.S. war in Afghanistan is the longest foreign war in U.S. history. A statement issued by organizers points out that “In just a few years’ time, the U.S. troops fighting in Afghanistan may well have been born after the war started.”

The statement issued by organizers goes on to say, “After 17 years at war in Afghanistan the U.S. is now escalating the level of U.S. involvement once again, with thousands of additional troops having been sent over the last year and an increase in U.S. air strikes.”

The statement continues, “The U.S. military is at war in Afghanistan today, but it is also in combat using U.S. troops, air strikes and drones in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere.

“U.S. intervention, wars, air strikes and drone attacks, will do nothing to fight terrorism, or to make the word safer. The U.S. war machine does not intervene to protect people or to fight terrorism, but to serve U.S. economic interests,” the statement concludes.

The Minneapolis protest will also call for funds to be redirected from war and intervention around the world to meet human needs, jobs, housing and hurricane relief.

The MPAC coalition brings together representatives of several local organizations to plan anti-war activities.

Plans will also be announced at the protest for a march and rally in Minneapolis on Sunday, October 21 to be held in solidarity with the Women's March on the Pentagon, which will call for an end to endless U.S. wars.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #PeoplesStruggles #AfghanistanWar #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – A Minneapolis protest on Sunday, April 15, called to coincide with national spring anti-war actions, brought out 70 people despite a heavy snow storm.

Over a foot of snow had fallen in the hours before the scheduled protest in the Uptown neighborhood. Many streets had become impassable, and service on many city bus lines had been suspended.

Organizers decided that with the U.S. bombing of Syria the day before, it was still important to have an anti-war statement. Plans were made to adjust the event to deal with the difficult weather environment.

Despite the conditions, 70 people attended the protest. One person attending said that after the bombing Syria, “I had to be here.”

Among the speakers were Meredith Aby-Keirstead of the Anti-War Committee who said, “We are here today to speak out against last night’s U.S. military attacks on Syria. We denounce Trump’s fake moral outrage and call this attack what it is: a pretext for more war. Trump claims to be defending civilian lives in Syria while banning Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. with his racist Muslim ban and ordering missile strikes on the most heavily populated part of the country.”

The protest was organized under the call of “Stop Endless U.S. Wars.”

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition initiated planning and the protest was endorsed by a range of organizations.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #Syria

The Minneapolis protest is being organized under the call of Stop Endless U.S. Wars. Demonstrators will gather April 15 at 1:30 p.m. at Lagoon and Hennepin Avenues. At 2:00 p.m. there will be a march that will conclude at the starting point.

Speakers from a variety of organizations will make remarks before and after the march. The April 15 protest has been initiated by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition.

A statement by organizers says, “The U.S. is at war in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and is carrying out military interventions in Somalia, Libya and elsewhere. There are constant threats of new military interventions in other countries.”

“There is a danger of a U.S. war on north Korea, which could kill hundreds of thousands of people in a matter of days,” the statement says.

“The appointment of war hawks by the Trump administration to key national security positions, including John Bolton to be national security advisor and Mike Pompeo to be secretary of state is a clear sign that the wars may escalate and expand. All opposed to U.S. wars and interventions must speak out and call for an end to the wars and interventions,” the statement continues.

“Through these appointments Trump is assembling a ‘war cabinet’. Beleaguered by political crisis on the home front, Trump is now positioning himself to launch a major war drive against north Korea and Iran. The people must speak out against the war drive. The spring actions will be an opportunity for all opposed to the U.S. wars to speak out,” the statement says.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

The Saturday protest is organized by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC).

A statement issued by MPAC says in part, “The Trump administration is carrying out a stealth escalation of U.S. wars and interventions around the world. More U.S. troops are being sent to Afghanistan, there are threats of a new Korean war, more drone strikes in Somalia and threats of escalations in Syria and Iraq.”

The call for the protest reads: “Stop U.S. wars and interventions,” and lists some of the countries the U.S. is involved in military actions, including, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Korea, Somalia, Pakistan, Yemen, Philippines and Venezuela.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

The protest will be held Saturday, March 19 at 1:00 p.m., starting at the intersection of S. 3rd Street and Cedar Avenue in the West Bank neighborhood of Minneapolis. Participants will gather with signs and banners and listen to speakers. At 1:30 there will be a street march will end up back at the starting location at 3rd and Cedar.

The protest is being organized under the call of “Say No to Endless War: Iraq, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan – Stop U.S. War in Iraq and Syria – Stop the Bombing – Troops Out Now.”

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “13 years after the start of the Iraq war, the U.S. is still at war today. The Obama administration has sent 4000 troops to Iraq and is carrying out daily bombing missions in both Iraq and Syria. The U.S. war continues in Afghanistan and the U.S. has recently launched strikes in Libya.”

The statement continues, “After years of U.S. bombs, troops, weapons and meddling, does anyone believe more of the same will make things better?”

News accounts indicate that there is discussion within the Pentagon of sending additional U.S. military forces to Iraq.

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition initiated the March 19 protest. Endorsers include a number of local peace and anti-war groups, including, Anti-War Committee, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Women Against Military Madness and others.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – A highly visible anti-war protest was held in the Twin Cities June 17 to speak out against the decision by the Obama administration, announced last week, to send additional U.S. troops to Iraq.

The Obama administration announced June 10 that at least 450 additional U.S. troops will be sent to Iraq. There are over 3000 U.S. troops in Iraq and the U.S. carries out daily air strikes against targets in Iraq and Syria.

Organizers of a weekly peace vigil on the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue bridge over the Mississippi River between Minneapolis and Saint Paul issued a special call for people to join the June 17 vigil under the call of opposing the sending of additional U.S. troops to Iraq and to call for an end to U.S. military intervention.

Over 30 people attend the event, even with the threat of rain and thundershowers.

One participant said, “The U.S. is raining down bombs on Iraq, we can be out in a little rain to say no to this new war in Iraq.”

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “On June 10, the Obama administration announced it would send 450 additional U.S. troops to Iraq. The latest U.S. intervention in Iraq is slowly escalating. Over 20 years of U.S. war, sanctions and occupation have created the crisis in Iraq; more U.S. troops, bombs, and weapons will not make things better.”

The statement goes on to say, “U.S. intervention caused the current crisis in Iraq. A new round of U.S. war will not solve any issues for the people of Iraq. The U.S. war machine cannot solve any problems; it can only bring more death and destruction.”

The weekly vigil is sponsored by sponsored by the End War Committee of Women Against Military Madness and the Twin Cities Peace Campaign.

Other groups that endorsed the call for the June 17 vigil to respond to the Iraq escalation included the Anti-War Committee, Military Families Speak Out (MN chapter), Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, and Veteran for Peace.

There was wide agreement at the event that additional actions will be needed in the weeks ahead.

#SaintPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

St. Paul, MN – 15 people braved the cold and wind to say no Cold War with Russia and no U.S. weapons to the Ukraine, Feb 18. The vigil took place on the Lake Street Marshall Avenue Bridge over the Mississippi River between Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “We will speak out against U.S. meddling in Ukraine, a new flashpoint with frightening global implications.”

“According to the United Nations, following the U.S.-inspired coup last February, the death toll from fighting in eastern Ukraine is more than 5300. Another 1.5 million people have been displaced.”

“As fighting intensifies, the Obama administration is now considering further escalation with $3.5 billion in heavy arms to the government in Ukraine. The U.S. is sending 600 troops to provide military training this spring.”

The statement concludes,”More U.S. intervention could provoke a war with Russia which would have regional and global implications.”

The weekly peace vigil was sponsored by the End War Committee of Women Against Military Madness and Twin Cities Peace Campaign.

The Feb. 18 vigil was endorsed by Anti-War Committee, Minnesota Peace Action Coalition and others.

#SaintPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #WomenAgainstMilitaryMadness #Ukraine #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #Europe

Minneapolis, MN – Over 25 people joined an emergency protest at the Minneapolis Federal Building on Sept. 23 to demonstrate against U.S. bombing of Syria.

The protest, organized with a few hours notice, was held to oppose the start of U.S. air strikes against targets in Syria.

The event was initiated by the Minnesota Peace action Coalition.

A statement issued by organizers said in part, “The U.S. intervention in Syria has nothing to do with concern for human rights, but is all about trying to maintain political and economic control of the region. The Pentagon does not send cruise missiles and bombs to help people, but to dominate the region. It is up to the people of the region to determine their own future, not the U.S.”

The statement continues, “The bombing campaign in Syria expands the new U.S. military intervention in the region that started this summer in Iraq. The new chapter of U.S. military intervention threatens the people of the region and will cost billions of dollars, funds that are needed for human needs.”

The picket is being organized in response to U.S. bombing of targets in Syria. The U.S. bombing campaign started Sept. 23.

The protest was organized under the call of “Say No to U.S. Bombing of Syria – No New Wars and Interventions – Stop the U.S. War in Iraq – Funds for Jobs and Housing, Not Wars and Interventions.”

Speaking at the event, Meredith Aby-Keirstead of the Anti-War Committee said, “Last night the U.S. war on terror expanded in a new way in Syria with 20 targets hit by U.S. bombers. 47 Tomahawk missiles were launched from two destroyers. The skies of Syria were filled last night with U.S. surveillance drones. I can only imagine the fear and devastation the U.S. caused last night to the people of Syria.”

Aby-Keirstead continued, “It’s important to note that this war isn’t just in Syria. The U.S. also launched four more air strikes in Iraq last night, bringing the total number since August, 2014 to 194.”

MPAC has called for a protest on Saturday, Sept. 27 at 3:00 pm to continue speaking out against the new U.S. wars. The Sept. 27 protest will start at 3:00 p.m. at Mayday Plaza, 3rd Street and Cedar Avenue in the West Bank neighborhood of Minneapolis.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #HandsOffSyria #FundsForJobsAndHousingNotWarsAndInterventions

Minneapolis, MN – Speaking out against a new U.S. war in Iraq was the task of over 50 people who joined an anti-war protest here, June 21, along the sidewalks at Hiawatha Avenue and Lake Street, one of the most visible locations in the city on a Saturday afternoon.

The protest comes after the June 19 announcement by President Obama that 300 U.S. special forces troops will be sent to Iraq as ‘advisers.’ Obama also stated that targets are being sought for bombing or drone strikes.

Participants held signs and banners against a new war.

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) initiated the call for the Saturday, June 21 event.

During the weekend, protests were held in cities around the U.S. – Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and elsewhere – to speak out against new military intervention in Iraq.

MPAC issued a statement that says in part, “As of now the Obama administration and the Pentagon have launched a new round of military intervention in Iraq. This will not end well for the people of Iraq or the people of the U.S.”

“It was the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq that destroyed the country and brought about the current crisis. There is nothing the Pentagon can do with more air strikes and destruction to undo that or to bring about peace. The people of Iraq must determine their own future,” the MPAC statement continues.

“No one knows how this will end, but when people hear ‘military advisers’ are being sent, one should remember how the Vietnam war started, with small numbers of advisers,” the MPAC statement concludes.

Speaking at the protest, Jess Sundin of the Anti-War Committee said, “When the president talks about bombing or sending advisors or any other kind of military aid, we know that will only bring more destruction to Iraq. The people of Iraq don't benefit from air strikes any more than we do here, and that's why we come out to the streets again and again, any time there are threats of war against our sisters and brothers in Iraq.”

The June 21 protest was the second event in the Twin Cities to speak out on the new war crisis. On June 18 over 80 people joined a weekly peace vigil sponsored by Women Against Military Madness and Twin Cities Peace Campaign. The groups urged to people to join the weekly peace vigil on an emergency basis due to the new war crisis.

The June 21 protest was endorsed by AFSCME Local 3800, Anti-War Committee, Coalition for Palestinian Rights, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Mayday Books, Minnesota Cuba Committee, St. Joan of Arc WAMM/Peacemakers, Socialist Action, Southside Pride newspaper, Students for a Democratic Society UMN, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Women Against Military Madness, Workers International League and others.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Iraq #AntiWarCommittee #IraqWar #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

The vigil, organized under the call, “No New U.S. war in Iraq!” will be held June 18 from 5:00 to 6:00 pm on the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue bridge over the Mississippi River.

Signs and banners protesting a new war are being prepared to use at the vigil, which will be seen by thousands of people during rush hour traffic. The End War Committee of Women Against Military Madness and the Twin Cities Peace Campaign sponsor the weekly peace vigil.

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC), an umbrella group of anti-war and peace groups, has endorsed the call for people to join others at the June 18 vigil. The Anti-War Committee is urging people to attend.

MPAC issued a statement that says in part, “It has become increasingly likely that the U.S. government will launch a new military intervention in Iraq. It is urgent that anti-war forces mobilize to tell the Obama administration that the people of this country oppose a new war in Iraq.”

The MPAC statement continues, “It was the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq that destroyed the country and brought about the current crisis. There is nothing the Pentagon can do with more air strikes and destruction to undo that or to bring about peace now. The people of Iraq must determine their own future.”

Area organizers plan additional activities against a new U.S. war in Iraq in the days ahead and are committed to organizing emergency protests if the U.S. starts bombing Iraq.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Iraq #AntiWarCommittee #IraqWar #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Minneapolis, MN – A highly visible anti-war protest was held in Minneapolis May 17, with over 120 people joining the demonstration.

The protest was called to be part of a national round of local anti-war and anti-drone protests during the months of April and May. The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) initiated planning for the event.

The May 17 protest was organized under the call of 'Stop the wars – Ground the drones', with the additional slogans of: Zero troops in Afghanistan; ground all military and surveillance drones; end drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia; for a full employment peace economy, not more war; no new wars – hot or cold; and U.S. hands off Syria, Ukraine, Korea, Venezuela, Palestine and everywhere.

In the final days before the protest, as the crisis in Ukraine reached a new and dangerous level, the International Action Center, United National Antiwar Coalition and other organizations issued a call for local protests May 9 – 26 against U.S. intervention in Ukraine.

MPAC, which in the initial call for the protest included the anti-intervention demand on Ukraine, endorsed the national call for anti-war actions on Ukraine and listed the May 17 event as one of the actions being held around the country to speak out against the danger of yet another war.

Signs and speakers at the protest spoke to the demand against intervention in Ukraine and against a new cold war with Russia.

The Minneapolis protest gathered at the very busy corner of Hiawatha Avenue and Lake Street. After 45 minutes of holding signs and banners, there was a march to Walker Community Church for an indoor rally.

A statement issued by organizers said in part, “Since 2004, over 2500 people have been killed by U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan. In Afghanistan, drone attacks are increasing and the U.S. government plans to keep thousands of troops and drones in Afghanistan for years to come. U.S. drone strikes are commonplace in Yemen and elsewhere.”

The statement goes on to say, “The endless series of U.S. wars and interventions continues, including increasing military aid, expanding U.S. bases around the world and internal meddling in other countries through economic pressures overseen by agencies such as International Monetary Fund and World Bank.”

At the rally a member of MPAC also warned that the U.S. was preparing military intervention in Nigeria in the name of saving kidnapped schoolgirls.

“The U.S. military does not intervene to help people, the U.S. military intervenes in the interests of corporations and profits, not people,” said the MPAC member.

The planning for the May 17 protest was initiated by MPAC and endorsed by a broad range of organizations, including, AFSCME Local 3800, Alliant Action, Anti-War Committee, Coalition for Palestinian Rights, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Mayday Books, Military Families Speak Out (MN chapter), Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Peace and Justice Committee of Sacred Heart Church (St. Paul), Peacemakers of Carondelet Village, PeaceMakers of Macalester Plymouth United Church, St. Joan of Arc Church, Socialist Action, Students for a Democratic Society (UMN), Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Welfare Rights Committee, Women Against Military Madness, Workers International League and others.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Afghanistan #Ukraine #USImperialism #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #drones #AntiImperialismDrones #Nigeria

This agreement will lay the basis for continuing the U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan.

Plans are being made to leave 10,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan after 2014, when the Obama administration had said all U.S. troops would be out of Afghanistan. There will also be several thousand NATO forces left in Afghanistan along with the U.S. troops. There likely will be thousands of “contractors” as well.

There is growing opposition in Afghanistan to the agreement.

Tasnim news agency reported that there was a protest in Kabul, Nov. 18, against the agreement. Tasnim reported, “During the demonstration on Monday, the protesters once again expressed opposition to the so-called Bilateral Security Agreement. The participants also called for the immediate withdrawal of the U.S. forces from the country.”

Tasnim reported, “Our Kabul correspondent Fayez Khorshid says public anger is boiling up in Afghanistan over the security pact as people continue to come out in protest of the deal.”

In the city of Jalalabad there was a demonstration on Nov. 17 involving many students against the BSA pact.

NBC News reported, “While many Americans have been led to believe the war in Afghanistan will soon be over, a draft of a key U.S.-Afghan security deal obtained by NBC News shows the U.S. is prepared to maintain military outposts in Afghanistan for many years to come and to pay to support hundreds of thousands of Afghan security forces.”

NBC reported, “The document appears to be the start of a new, open-ended military commitment in Afghanistan…”

After 12 years of war in Afghanistan, the U.S. has been unable to secure its war aims. The massive opposition to the war in the U.S. and the resistance of the Afghan people to more war and occupation is forcing the U.S. to try and maintain its role in Afghanistan in such a way that the opposition can be lessened.

As Time magazine reported in an online article this week, “...there’s always the chance that delaying the departure of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan will simply delay the inevitable.”

The opposition in Afghanistan to the continued presence of foreign forces is so high that the Karzai regime has had negotiations with the U.S. to make an appearance of standing up for Afghan independence.

The Karzai government made a show of insisting that U.S. troops could be prosecuted under Afghan law and saying that U.S. troops could not raid Afghan homes.

A flurry of phone calls between Karzai and U.S. Secretary of State Kerry John Kerry in the last few days has seemingly come up with language that gives everyone political cover.

The Karzai government has also called for the holding of a Loya Jirga, a Grand Assembly, that is a traditional Afghan gathering of social leaders to discuss issues of national impotence. Karzai has said that the Loya Jirga will discuss the BSA agreement and decide whether to enact it.

The Wall Street Journal reported, “The Loya Jirga, most of whose delegates were selected by provincial authorities, and whose membership list was approved” by Karzai, “is highly unlikely to do anything against the wishes of the Afghan president.”

The students demonstrating against the BSA agreement in Jalalabad were clear in statements they gave to a reporter from Agence France-Presse about their view of the Loya Jirga called by Karzai: “The people of Afghanistan should not sign this agreement,” Shafiullah, a student who uses only one name, said as demonstrators chanted “Death to the U.S.” 

Another student, Habib-Ul Rahman Arab, accused the delegates, most of them hand-picked by President Hamid Karzai’s administration, of being government supporters. 

“They are not our representatives. They are not representatives of the Afghan people,” he said.

U.S. Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) issued a statement Nov. 20 on the announcement of the BSA language agreement. Lee said in her statement, “This revelation is outrageous. The possibility of a military presence into 2024 is unacceptable. After 13 years and more than $778 billion invested” in Afghanistan and “the corrupt Karzai government, it is time to bring our troops and tax dollars home.”

Alan Dale, a member of the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, said, “All opposed to the war should speak out against this plan to keep thousands of U.S. troops in Afghanistan. As long as U.S. troops are in Afghanistan the war will continue. The people of Afghanistan must be free to determine their own future.”

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Afghanistan #AfghanistanWar #USImperialism #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #BilateralSecurityAgreement

Minneapolis, MN – On Oct. 7 over 200 people joined a Minneapolis anti-war protest to mark the anniversary of the start of the war on Afghanistan with a call for an end to war and for the troops to be brought home.

The Minneapolis protest gathered in the busy Uptown area and then marched over a mile to a closing rally.

The protest was initiated by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC). MPAC issued a statement that says in part, “The war in Afghanistan is now 11 years old, the longest war in U.S. history. Along with over 2000 U.S. military personnel, thousands of Afghans have lost their lives, thousands more injured and many more displaced.”

The MPAC statement continues, “Despite claims that the U.S. is winding down the war, tens of thousands of U.S. troops will stay there through 2014. The U.S. has plans to keep thousands of troops, contractors, CIA operatives and air power (including drones), there until 2024.”

“All opposed to the continuation of this war must speak out. Without an independent marching movement, the U.S. government will stay in Afghanistan not only for another two years, but many more years after that,” the MPAC statement continues.

“The people of Afghanistan want the occupation forces out of their country. The people of the U.S. want an end to the war and for the troops to be brought home,” the MPAC statement concludes.

Members of Occupy Minnesota joined the anti-war protest. Occupy Minnesota was holding a gathering to mark one year since the launching of the Occupy movement in Minnesota. Occupy Minnesota participants held their own march to meet up with the anti-war protest.

Mia Overly, a member of Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Minnesota was among the speakers. Overly explained that her brother is in the U.S. military in Afghanistan.

Overly said, “Brothers and sisters, as you know we are all here today to mark 11 years of the war and occupation in Afghanistan. But I am here today also as a person directly affected by this unjust and inhumane occupation. My brother is one of the young Marines that are currently in Afghanistan. To end this war is personal for me!”

Overly continued, “Young soldiers and marines are dying in Afghanistan every day, 31 every month on average. More than 2000 American troops have died in this 11-year war. These deaths go unrecognized; but they are the lives of our brothers, our sisters, our daughters and sons. Even more unnoticed than the forgotten American deaths are the deaths of our Afghan brothers and sisters. Countless Afghans die every year from the U.S. occupation of their country. The U.S. finds these deaths so inconsequential that there isn’t even a officially released death count. But you can bet these deaths are in the millions.”

Another speaker, Meredith Aby of the Anti War Committee told the crowd, “For 11 years now we have had the War on Terror – a war on the peoples of the world in the name of ‘fighting terrorism.’ A war that has targeted Muslim and Arab people abroad and at home. A war that has eroded our civil liberties at home. A war that has killed thousands of U.S. service members and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Afghans. A war that has deprived school children and the poor of the government tax dollars that they need to read, eat and survive.”

The Minneapolis protest was organized under the call of “End the War in Afghanistan Now!”, as well as opposing in wars in Syria and Iran and calling for funds for jobs, housing and other human needs, not war.

The weekend of October 5-7 saw anti-war protests in many cities around the U.S. to speak out against the war.

A wide range of organizations, including AFSCME Local 3800, the Anti-War Committee, Military Families Speak Out, Students for a Democratic Society, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, and Women Against Military Madness endorsed the Minneapolis protest.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AfghanistanWar #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #OccupyMinneapolis

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) issued a statement that says in part, “The sad news today that of the 2000th U.S. military death in Afghanistan highlights the fact that the war in Afghanistan is continuing with an ever-growing number of military and civilian victims.”

The statement also announced plans for an anti-war march and rally to be held in Minneapolis on Sunday, Oct. 7, which will be part of a national weekend of anti-war actions to mark 11 years since the start of the war.

“The majority of people of Afghanistan want all foreign troops out of their country. The explosion of so-called ‘green on blue’ attacks demonstrates that the presence of occupation forces can only lead to more war,” the statement said.

“Despite claims that the U.S. in winding down the war in Afghanistan, 68,000 U.S. troops remain. While the U.S. government talks about withdrawal by the end of 2014, there are plans to leave thousands of U.S. troops in Afghanistan until perhaps 2024.”

The statement continues, “How many U.S. soldiers and Afghans must lose their lives before our government finally admits that the war is wrong and it is time to bring the troops home?”

The MPAC statement concludes, “The war has produced a horrendous human cost of dead and injured, but a huge financial cost as well. Each dollar that is spent on the war is a dollar that is not spent on human needs such as housing, healthcare and the environment.”

The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition Oct. 7 protest will gather at 1:00 p.m. at Hennepin and Lagoon Avenues in the Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis. At 1:30 p.m., there will be a march to Loring Park for a closing rally.

The weekend of Oct. 5-7 will see protests, vigils and other events in cities across the U.S. to mark 11 years of war with a call for an end to the war.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AfghanistanWar #USImperialism #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition

Four long-time, well-known and respected activists spoke of the familiar and disastrous U.S. history of using human rights as a pretext for military intervention.

Sami Rasouli lived in Minneapolis for 25 years. After the U.S. invasion in 2005 he moved back to his home in Iraq. He formed the Muslim Peacemakers Team, a group that works for peace and human rights in Iraq. Every year he comes back to Minnesota to report on his work and the reality of life in Iraq under U.S. occupation. Rasouli said that before the war and occupation there was no Sunni-Shia divide between these Muslim groups. The occupying forces manufactured the conflict and then said they had to stay to protect the people. “Now, because of the devastation of the U.S. war and occupation, many Iraqis say they miss Saddam. I think Syrians will say they miss Assad.”

April Knutson has worked in solidarity with the people of Haiti for many years. Knutson began her talk with a quote of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. “Haiti’s exceptional poverty is the result of an exceptional history – one that extracted equally exceptional wealth.” She then outlined Haiti’s history, beginning with the successful slave revolt in 1791 that resulted in their emancipation and independence from France. She also described the horrific price they have paid for daring to rebel: France forced them to pay an indemnity in compensation for the loss of land and slaves that today would amount to over $21.7 billion; imperial powers kidnapped two popular leaders; the U.S. occupied Haiti from 1915-34; the U.S. provided political and military support for the brutal dictatorships of Papa Doc and Baby Doc Duvalier; and non-Haitians extorted wealth by the crushing exploitation of Haiti’s resources and people. Knutson also described another travesty: “At the time of the earthquake in 2010, U.N. occupation forces had been on the island since the kidnapping of Aristide. But their mandate was only to stabilize, not improve, so it was just a repressive force.” Knutson added “And the U.S. forces that took over the airport refused for days to allow planes from around the world carrying relief and emergency workers to land.”

Jess Sundin is a member of the Anti-War Committee. In September 2010 her home was raided, and she was subpoenaed by the FBI to appear before a federal grand jury because of her antiwar and international solidarity work. She spoke about the eleven year U.S. intervention in and occupation of Afghanistan. The stated U.S. aims for involvement, if true, would have made it the shortest war in U.S. history. The real objectives, which include control of pipelines and establishing bases near China, India, Russia and Pakistan, have made it the longest war in U.S. history, with no end in sight. A major pretext for war was to secure women’s human rights. Sundin said, “The reality is that the U.S. installed puppet government in Afghanistan has failed to extend democratic rights to women. In April the Karzai government approved new legislation that limited guardianship of children to father and paternal grandfather, that a wife could not leave her house with the permission of her husband, that women could only inherit moveable property, and that a wife is “bound to preen for her husband as and when he desires.”

Linda Hoover, member of MPAC and Women Against Military Madness (WAMM), laid out the geo-political analysis behind U.S. military interventions and occupations. Countries in the crosshairs of U.S. aggression stand in the way of total U.S. control of resources to maintain economic supremacy. She said, “The U.S. sponsored seizure of Syria is part of its attempt to divide Eurasia and to maintain its status as the sole superpower. The goal of toppling the government in Syria is to balkanize the country by partitioning it into four regions and to get closer to toppling the government in Iran, the stronger regional power opposing U.S. domination. Large portions of the U.S. budget, as well as great amounts of wealth stolen from other places around the world, goes to fund the military so that it can stop other countries from becoming economic competitors.

As a result a large number of working class people here and across the world are suffering. She called on those of us in the most advanced imperialist countries to take our place in the great movements of liberation going on in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #Syria #MinnesotaPeaceActionCoalition #antiimperialism #humanitarianIntervention