Crossroad

[Yoshie Furuhashi <furuhashi.1@xxxxxxx>]

Here we are at a crossroad from which paths will diverge: some will
oppose any form of the occupation of Iraq; others will seek to make
the occupation a nominally UN-administered one; and yet others will
work to elect Democrats.

*****   Published on Friday, April 11, 2003 by the Associated Press
Anti-War Groups Scout Out New Role
by Jeff Donn

...United for Peace and Justice, another big newcomer to the peace
movement, may start focusing more heavily on smaller regional events
than on mass protests, said spokesman Jason Kafoury.

"We're trying to make sure we're doing the right thing at the right
time," said Mary Ellen McNish, head of the Americans Friends Service
Committee, a branch of the pacifist Quaker church....

If peace appears at hand in Iraq, the anti-war movement's new message
will be that "occupation isn't liberation," said Mara
Verheyden-Hilliard, on the steering committee of International Answer.

"We believe that the U.S. must withdraw from the Middle East. We're
not trying to create a kinder and gentler occupation," she added.

Other anti-war leaders say they will refocus on supporting a dominant
U.N. role in rebuilding Iraq and greater American cooperation with
that body. Many groups say they must stay active to guard against
what they fear could be Bush administration plans to attack Syria or
Iran next.

Edgar suggested that perhaps his group should rename itself Win Without Wars.

"It's easier to organize people to stop a war than it is once ... the
war is winding down. The good thing is you have a base," he said.
"Even if the base shrinks a bit, we believe there's a good
opportunity to use the leverage we have."

Some groups are retooling their messages to denounce what they view
as excessive American militarism and to push for U.S. nuclear
disarmament, promote domestic issues like better schools and health
care, and organize to expel Bush and war-backing congressmen in next
year's elections.

Peace Action expects to place newspaper ads this month with two other
groups encouraging sympathizers to vote their convictions next year.

"It may not be 100,000 people in the streets, but it's necessary to
make sure this sort of thing doesn't happen again," said Peace Action
spokesman Scott Lynch.

The wider sweep of future agendas could make it harder to forge
common action in a movement that has until now embraced pacifists and
veterans, radicals and middle Americans, with only occasional
bickering....

<http://commondreams.org/headlines03/0411-01.htm>   *****

--
Yoshie

* Calendar of Events in Columbus:
<http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html>
* Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/>
* Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osudivest.org/>
* Al-Awda-Ohio: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Al-Awda-Ohio>
* Solidarity: <http://solidarity.igc.org/>