AP/Shawn Baldwin
The Bush administration's efforts to wage a war of aggression against Iraq are now the catalyst to a global anti-war movement. The policies of Bush are engendering a global resistance movement that is stepping forward to assert the right of people to live in peace with justice and self-determination. The sheer mass of people deciding that this is their time to speak is a message of hope.
Large anti-war demonstrations took place in most of the major cities of the world. More than 600 cities and towns were the scene of vibrant protests. AP/ Shawn Baldwin
In New York City, the people defied police refusal to grant a march permit by turning the upper east side broad boulevards into a sea of humanity. The police used horses, clubs and pepper spray to assault peaceful protesters. The National Lawyers Guild Mass Defense Committee reports that over 320 people have been arrested and many are being held in tight handcuffs without access to water, food or bathroom facilities.
Internationally, the demonstrations included some of the biggest ever. The original call for the February 15 demonstrations came from the European anti-war movement. In London, the demonstration was nearly two million according to march organizers. Africa, Asia, South America, the Middle East, and Australia all protested. Millions more marched throughout Europe -- in Berne, Switzerland, Madrid, Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Amsterdam and throughout the continent. In Damascus, 200,000 marched. Tens of thousands marched in Buenos Aires. In Toronto, 80,000 took to the streets.
At the White House Convergence on March 1, thousands of people will demand No War on Iraq. They will call for George Bush to be impeached for crimes committed in planning and executing war abroad and assaulting constitutionally protected civil rights and civil liberties at home. |
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In Solidarity,
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