Fw: [ANSWER]: MARCH 15: Emergency Anti-War Convergence on the White House

["Nello Margiotta" <animarg at tin.it>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "A.N.S.W.E.R." <answer.general at action-mail.org>
To: <answer.general at action-mail.org>
Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2003 6:39 AM
Subject: [ANSWER]: MARCH 15: Emergency Anti-War Convergence on the White
House


 MARCH 15:
 Emergency Anti-War Convergence on the White House

 MARCH 1:
 Locally-Coordinated Actions

 The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition and other organizations are
 calling for an Emergency National Anti-War Convergence to
 TAKE IT TO THE WHITE HOUSE on Saturday, March 15. There
 will be parallel activities on the West Coast.

 The Emergency Convergence had originally been set for
 March 1 because we wanted to continue to mobilize
 pro-actively to prevent war before it started. It appeared
 that the Bush administration would seize upon negative or
 ambiguous language presented in the UN weapons inspectors
 February 14 report and use it as a pretext for a quick
 launching of the war.

 We propose now that March 1 be a day for local organizing
 and that the Emergency Convergence at the White House be
 on March 15. Now the Bush war timetable has been pushed
 back because of the political developments that took the
 administration by surprise in the last week.

 1) The report by the inspectors to the Security Council on
 February 14 and the subsequent discussion inside the UN
 was a significant set back for the Bush administration's
 plans. Included in his report, Hans Blix debunked some of
 the dramatic presentation points made by Secretary of
 State Powell in his February 5 speech at the UN indicting
 Iraq. The presentation by International Atomic Energy
 Agency Director General Mohammed ElBaradei revealed that
 the inspectors had seen no indication that Iraq was
 working on a nuclear weapons program. It was clear from
 the response of various UN delegates that the Bush
 administration had been momentarily pushed into a
 defensive posture, its arguments and rationale for a rush
 to war exposed.

 2) While the events of Friday at the UN were significant,
 the real factor is the massive street protests of the past
 few months that have forced some governments to at least
 temporarily pull back from a rush to war. This weekend
 brought tens of millions of people around the globe into
 simultaneous action against the war. The social and
 political relevance of the reemergence of a global mass
 movement is altering the political equation. It has been
 the basic premise of the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition that the
 only thing that could prevent this aggression against Iraq
 was for the people themselves to become a major force
 though mass action. Every government in the world and all
 the mass media are recognizing this central fact.

 The New York Times agrees with the Bush agenda for the
 overthrow of the Iraqi government and it supports a war to
 accomplish that end. Thus, it is worth including a few
 words from a front page article from the Times which
 summarizes the importance of the mass movement:

 "The fracturing of the Western alliance over Iraq and the
 huge antiwar demonstrations around the world this weekend
 are reminders that there may still be two superpowers on
 the planet: the United States and world public opinion.

 "In his campaign to disarm Iraq, by war if necessary,
 President Bush appears to be eyeball to eyeball with a
 tenacious new adversary: millions of people who flooded
 the streets of New York and dozens of other world cities
 to say they are against war based on the evidence at
 hand." (New York Times, Monday, February 17, A1, "A New
 Power in the Streets")

 Because of the intervention of the people, the Bush
 administration has again been at least momentarily
 frustrated in its rush to war. Since this is a dynamic
 struggle between the "two superpowers" (as the NY Times
 puts it), we all need to be prepared to respond as
 necessary to effectively counter Bush's war drive.

 A.N.S.W.E.R. organizers around the country feel that there
 is a significant advantage to moving the Emergency
 Convergence on the White House to March 15. With two
 additional weeks of organizing time, the mobilization can
 be significantly stronger.

 We also know that there will be March 15 mobilizations in
 Spain, Greece, Japan, and we expect in a growing number of
 cities around the world.

 March 1 is still a significant date and we encourage
 coordinated local demonstrations on that day. This is the
 date that the UN inspectors are now scheduled to give a
 follow up report to the United Nations.

 Also, on March 5 A.N.S.W.E.R. is supporting and organizing
 for the National Moratorium Day, and on March 8 there will
 be local events recognizing International Women's Day (as
 there are every year), for which A.N.S.W.E.R. is
 mobilizing around the country.

 WHAT YOU CAN DO:

 1) Endorse the mobilization. Fill out the easy-to-use form
 at
 http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/m15/index.html#endo
 (if the link does not take you directly to the form,
 scroll down)

 2) Organize buses, vans or car caravans from your city. If
 you are planning transportation to Washington DC, fill out
 the transportation form to spread the word:
 http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/m15/index.html#transp
 (if the link does not take you directly to the form,
 scroll down)

 3) Help get the word out! Flyers can be downloaded from
 our web site, or we can send you a packet in the mail. A
 new flyer will be available by the beginning of next week.
 You can download the current flyer at:
 Front:
 http://www.internationalanswer.org/pdf/0315flyerp1.pdf
 Back: http://www.internationalanswer.org/pdf/m15back.pdf

 Please check the March 15 page on the A.N.S.W.E.R. website
 at
 http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/m15/index.html
 frequently for additional organizing information. This
 will include updated downloadable flyers, as well as
 posters and stickers; listings of transportation from
 around the country; additional logistical information; &
 more.

 ---------------------

 FOR MORE INFORMATION:
 http://www.InternationalANSWER.org
 http://www.VoteNoWar.org
 info at internationalanswer.org
 New York 212-633-6646
 Washington 202-544-3389
 Los Angeles 213-487-2368
 San Francisco 415-821-6545

 To make a tax-deductible donation, go to
 http://www.internationalanswer.org/donate.html

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 http://www.internationalanswer.org/subscribelist.html

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