Labor, anti-war movements join hands to protest Bush
Almost 300 protesters told President George W. Bush, "No new
war against Iraq--keep the government off the docks!" in
Stockton, Calif., Aug. 23. A Republican stronghold in the
Central Valley, Stockton was Bush's first California stop in
his West Coast sweep.
In a very significant anti-war, pro-labor alliance,
International ANSWER--the Act Now to Stop War and End Racism
coalition--and San Francisco's International Longshore and
Warehouse Union Local 10 jointly called the protest.
The demonstration's central demands were to stop a new war
on Iraq before it starts and no government intervention in the
ILWU port workers' struggle for a new contract. Many other
issues were raised, from disability rights to saving the
forests.
Global Exchange activist Medea Benjamin briefly disrupted
Bush's morning speech. She shouted "No new war on Iraq!" before
she was tackled and detained by police.
People mobilized for the protest from around Northern
California. ANSWER, ILWU Local 10 and Global Exchange organized
buses from the Bay Area.
--Nancy Mitchell
Reprinted from the Sept. 5, 2002, issue of
Workers World newspaper
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