Tucson Anti War Committee launches campaign against Howmet Aerospace
Tucson, AZ – The members of the Tucson Anti War Committee (TAWC) joined in the national campaign against Howmet Aerospace. Howmet is a manufacturer of parts for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jet. F-35s purchased by Israel are used in the genocidal war against Gaza and recently missile strikes in the West Bank.
In the fall, BDS Pittsburgh initiated outreach to the anti-war groups affiliated with the Anti-War Action Network that have Howmet facilities in their cities. So far, Cleveland United Against War, the Minnesota Anti-War Committee and TAWC, have joined other cities in the campaign against Howmet.
TAWC hosted a community teach-in at Revolutionary Grounds bookstore and coffee shop on December 6. The presentation gave information on the connections between the state of Arizona and Zionist Israel. People heard about the dozens of companies that contract with Israel and Israeli companies, state-held bonds of $15 million, multiple AIPAC-funded state representatives like Alma Hernandez, and about Howmet Aerospace’s contract with Lockheed Martin.
17% of Howmet Aerospace’s business is making parts for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jet.
TAWC organizer Maria Sohn Hasman stated, “We have and should continue to hold protests and marches to denounce Israel’s continued genocide of Gaza and attacks on the West Bank and elsewhere in occupied Palestine. But this campaign presents an opportunity to stop production of the F-35 and deal a material blow to the Zionist regime and U.S. imperialism.”
Next steps for the campaign are outreach and flyering to raise awareness and build a mass movement locally and nationally to get Howmet to cut ties with genocide.