Convergence on White House on the 15th
Anti-war actions to multiply in March
By John Catalinotto
The intransigence of the Bush administration in the face of
massive anti-war actions has impelled activists worldwide to
continue the struggle to "stop the U.S. war on Iraq before it
starts," as many organizations state on their leaflets these
days.
Here in the United States local actions are already set on
March 1, a moratorium is scheduled for March 5, there will be
International Women's Day protests on March 8 that focus on the
threatened war, and an emergency national convergence is
scheduled for March 15 in Washington.
Larry Holmes of the International ANSWER coalition told
Workers World that "With the Bush administration moving closer
to war each day, the movement feels the urgency to counter it.
But it's more than that," he added. "The mass mobilizations of
Feb. 15 amount to a popular mandate to the movement to take
actions that can stop the war."
Holmes pointed to the March 15 demonstration in Washington
as timed for the moment when Bush and company have warned they
will launch a war after trying to push a resolution through the
Security Council at the United Nations. "We don't know how the
UN vote will go," said Holmes, "but either way, ANSWER will
mobilize against the war."
The plan for March 15 is to gather at 12 noon at the
Washington Monument, just south of the White House at
Constitution Ave. between 15th and 17th Streets, NW, for a
rally and march. The protest, says Holmes, has the general
support of the peace movement.
Buses, vans and car caravans will travel from the East
Coast, Midwest and South to be at the White House on March 15.
Transportation and downloadable leaflets are available on the
web site listed below.
On the initiative of the Not In Our Name coalition, there
will be a moratorium on March 5. On NION's web site, the group
calls for the "next phase of resistance to stop the war before
it starts--no school, no work, no business as usual," and
suggests people call in sick, close their businesses, or, if
they are students, plan a walkout at their schools.
Teresa Gutierrez told Workers World of a call by the Women
of ANSWER to make March 8, International Women's Day, a day of
solidarity with Iraqi women. "It has been true that, on the
home front, women bear the brunt of war. But now the home front
and the war front are almost indistinguishable. Iraqi women are
under attack these days as they face the missiles and bombs of
the Pentagon, the loss of drinkable water, the absence of
health care. Here, too, women face cuts in social services and
the disruption of their families."
ANSWER chapters in New York City, Baltimore, Los Angeles and
other U.S. cities have planned IWD actions.
Code Pink Alert has been holding a "rolling fast and vigil"
against the war for the past few months in Washington, D.C. The
group calls it a "women's preemptive strike against war." The
vigils are building up to a demonstration on March 8, when
people are being asked to "come to Wash ington to stand up for
peace and justice."
For International ANSWER bus information and to download
leaflets, go to www.InternationalANSWER.org.
For NION, see www.notinourname.net. For
Code Pink Alert, see www.codepink4peace.org.
Reprinted from the March 6, 2003, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyrighted
under a Creative
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