Please call your/our legislators – both senators and congressional representative – today to ask them to vote and act as requested by the many Peace Action reps (including PANYS President Jim Anderson and WNYPC Director Vicki Ross) who are asking them to support peace worldwide in many ways. High on the list is stop aiding Saudi war crimes on Yemen (thank Sen Gillibrand); support peace in Korea; no-first-use nuclear policy; and defund war while funding peace! Calling 202-224-3121 will reach each and all.
Students from some of the 20 NYS Student Chapters of Peace Action New York State (PANYS) along with other chapters including the WNY Peace Center; lobbying Senators Schumer’s excellent legislative aide, Clarissa Chandoo, on peace issues and stopping the militarism!!
Judging U.S. War Crimes
Peace Activist Kathy Kelly contributed the below, elaborating on the desperate situation(s).
kathyincircle1
Judging U.S. War Crimes by Kathy Kelly
March 10, 2019
Chelsea Manning, who bravely exposed atrocities committed by
the U.S. military, is again imprisoned in a U.S. jail. On International Women’s
Day, March 8, 2019, she was incarcerated in the Alexandria, VA federal detention
center for refusing to testify in front of a secretive Grand Jury. Her
imprisonment can extend through the term of the Grand Jury, possibly 18 months,
and the U.S. courts could allow formation of future Grand Juries, potentially
jailing her again.
Chelsea Manning has already paid an extraordinarily high
price for educating the U.S. public about atrocities committed in the wars of
choice the U.S. waged in Iraq and Afghanistan. Chelsea Manning was a U.S. Army
soldier and former U.S. intelligence analyst. She already testified, in court,
how she downloaded and disseminated government documents revealing classified
information she believed represented possible war crimes. In 2013, she was
convicted by court martial and sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking
government documents to Wikileaks. On January 17, 2017, President Obama
commuted her sentence. In May of 2017, she was released from military prison having
served seven years.
“Where you stand determines what you see.” Chelsea Manning,
by virtue of her past work as an analyst with the U.S. military, carefully
studied footage of what could only be described as atrocities against human
beings. She saw civilians killed, on her screen, and conscience didn’t allow
her to ignore what she witnessed, to more or less change the channel. One scene
of carnage occurred on July 12, 2007, in Iraq. Chelsea Manning made available
to the world the black and white grainy footage and audio content which depicted
a U.S. helicopter gunship indiscriminately firing on Iraqi civilians. Twelve people
were killed, including two Reuters journalists.
What follows is part of the dialogue from the classified US
military video footage from July 12th:
US SOLDIER 2: Alright, we just engaged
all eight individuals.
Amy Goodman described
the next portion of the video:
AMY GOODMAN: Minutes later, the video
shows US forces watching as a van pulls up to evacuate the wounded. They again
open fire, killing several more people, wounding two children inside the
van.
US SOLDIER 2: Bushmaster, Crazy Horse.
We have individuals going to the scene, looks like possibly picking up bodies
and weapons.
US SOLDIER 1: Let me engage. Can I
shoot?
US SOLDIER 2: Roger. Break. Crazy
Horse one-eight, request permission to engage.
US SOLDIER 3: Picking up the wounded?
US SOLDIER 1: Yeah, we’re trying to
get permission to engage. Come on, let us shoot!
US SOLDIER 2: Bushmaster, Crazy Horse
one-eight.
US SOLDIER 1: They’re taking him.
US SOLDIER 2: Bushmaster, Crazy Horse
one-eight.
US SOLDIER 4: This is Bushmaster
seven, go ahead.
US SOLDIER 2: Roger. We have a
black SUV —- or Bongo truck picking up the bodies. Request permission
to engage.
US SOLDIER 4: Bushmaster seven, roger.
This is Bushmaster seven, roger. Engage.
US SOLDIER 2: One-eight, engage.
Clear.
US SOLDIER 1: Come on!
US SOLDIER 2: Clear. Clear.
US SOLDIER 1: We’re engaging.
US SOLDIER 3: I got ’em.
US SOLDIER 2: Should have a van in the
middle of the road with about twelve to fifteen bodies.
US SOLDIER 1: Oh yeah, look at that.
Right through the windshield! Ha!
Democracy Now, in the same segment, asked
former U.S. whistleblower Dan Ellsberg for comments about releasing the video. “What
were the criteria,” Ellsberg asked, “that led to denying this to the public?
And how do they stand up when we actually see the results? Is anybody going to
be held accountable for wrongly withholding evidence of war crimes in this
case…?”
Chelsea Manning’s disclosures also led to public awareness
of the Granai
massacre in Afghanistan. On May 4, 2009, Taliban forces attacked U.S. and
Afghan forces in Afghanistan’s Farah province. The U.S. military called for
U.S. airstrikes on buildings in the village of Granai. A U.S. Air Force B-1
bomber was used to drop 2,000 lb. and 500 lb. bombs, killing an estimated 86 to
147 women and children. The U.S. Air Force has videotape of the Granai
massacre. Ellsberg called for President Obama to post the videotape rather than
wait to see if Wikileaks would release it. To this day, the video hasn’t been
released. Apparently, a disgruntled Wikileaks employee destroyed the footage.
Were it not for Chelsea Manning’s courageous disclosures, certain
U.S. military atrocities might have been kept secret. Her revelations were also
key to exposing U.S. approval of the 2008 coup against the elected government
in Honduras and U.S. dealings with dictators and oligarchs across the Middle
East, which helped spark the Arab Spring rebellions.
Prior to her
arrest in 2010, Chelsea Manning wrote: “I want people to see the truth,
regardless of who they are. Because without information, you cannot make
informed decisions as a public.”
Chelsea Manning’s principled and courageous actions provide
guidance for us to control our fears. We must seek an end to war crimes in
Afghanistan, Iraq and other areas where the U.S. terrifies and kills civilians.
We are in the midst of Peace Action’s National Organizing Meeting, and we’re meeting with our congresspersons in the name of peace! We are demanding that our government put an end to endless wars and endless military spending, commit to building communities that work for all of us, and guide U.S. foreign policy away from war and towards sustainable peace. Please call Congressman Brian Higgins – 26th Congressional district– (202) 225-3306, or locally (716) 852-3501 to voice your concerns tomorrow (Tuesday, 3/26), preferably from 12:30-1:30pm to voice your concerns.
The LASC Peace Coffeehouse is tonight! 7-8:30pm, Canisius College Science Hall. James Jordan of the Alliance for Global Justice will speak on his continuing work for economic labor justice in Columbia, Venezuela, and throughout Latin America.
**We have extended the deadline to receive Board nominations for the WNY Peace Center. Please forward any suggestions to nominations@wnypeace.org. Thank you.**
Thank you to everyone who attended last week’s events Northern Access Pipelines speakouts! Thank you to everyone who attending Fly Kites Not Drones at LaSalle Park!
Save the Date: On 4/4/19, we will welcome the Poor People’s Campaign’s National Emergency Van Tour and commemorate 51 years since Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. started the first Poor People’s Campaign, since his participation in and support of the sanitation workers’ strike, and since Dr. King’s last sermon, ‘I’ve been to the mountaintop’. It is also 51 years, to the day, of his assassination. Stay tuned to wnypeace.org and the weekly news for more information.
Also, tonight – Prisoners Are People Too Monthly Meeting, 7-9pm, CAO Rafi Green Center, 1423 Fillmore Avenue, Buffalo, NY. Open to the public. Please also see the poignant article by abolitionist Karima Amin, and information on the upcoming Prison Abolition Conference, in the body of this post (under Prisoners’ Rights).
As usual, this week brings us new opportunities to work towards peace through justice!
Events this week:
Think Indigenous: Richard Oakes & the Red Power Movement
March 25 @ 5:00 pm, 10 Capen (The Buffalo Room), UB. Talk by historian Prof. Kent Blansett, Univ of Nebraska, Omaha. As the University at Buffalo marks the anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement with exhibitions, installations, and programming centered on the theme “Revolution: Civil Rights at UB, 1960-1975 ,” the Indigenous Inclusion Subcommittee and the Haudenosaunee-Native American Research Group, with support from the Department of History, are pleased to welcome historian Kent Blansett to campus for a talk about the Red Power movement of this period and the important work of Akwesasne Mohawk activist Richard Oakes. Free and open to the public. See complete event post for more information and links to relevant articles.
Labor Solidarity – Latin America
March 25 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
March Peace Coffeehouse, Canisius College Science Hall (pking on main near Delevan). James Jordan of the Alliance for Global Justice will speak on his continuing work for economic labor justice in Columbia, Venezuela, and throughout Latin America. Light refreshments. Jointly sponsored by PeaceAction – Canisius College, and the WNY Peace Center’s LASC/Latin American Solidarity Committee.
Prisoners Are People Too Monthly Meeting
March 25, 7:00 to 9:00pm
C.A.O. Masten Resource/Rafi Greene Center, 1423 Fillmore Avenue @ Glenwood.
Regular monthly meeting, open to the public. Please also see the poignant article by abolitionist Karima Amin, and information on the upcoming Prison Abolition Conference, in the body of this post (under Prisoners’ Rights).
Call-in to Cong. Higgins’ DC Office!!
March 26 @ 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm
Please call Cong Higgins’ DC Office at 202-225-3306 to support PeaceAction/WNYPC positions (undo AUMF, re-do disarmament agreements, mammoth decrease in military funding, create PEACE DIVIDEND!!, more) while PANYS President Jim Anderson, WNYPC Exec Director Vicki Ross, and others are meeting with Cong Higgins.
Styrofoam Ban – Common Council hearing – Come out to voice your concerns
March 26 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
13th Floor, City Hall, 65 Niagara Square, Buffalo, NY 14202.
Community Development Committee meeting on this issue this coming Tuesday, 3/26 at 2pm in the Common Council chamber (13th floor in City Hall), and the Sierra Club Niagara Group is specifically invited to attend per the agenda item. Members of the public are asked to attend and discuss the pros and cons of a Styrofoam ban. Please come if you can to voice your support for this proposal. We have included 2 fact sheets on the waste and health issues that you can use as talking points, and a video for your review.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2098476837129562/
Poverty is a Human Rights Issue: Social Work and Economic Justice
March 27 @ 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
4th Annual Symposium UB School of Social Work
Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Room 1220
995 Main St, Buffalo NY 14203 (use entrance at corner of Main St. and High St.). This event is free and open to the public, though pre-registration is required. Visit eventbrite.com for more information.
Many more events on the website!
Many thanks, peace, solidarity, and yes – Love
We shall overcome #Unitethestruggles #Loveislove #PowerWITH-NOTPowerOver
No hate, no fear as we are #StillResisting.
Peace, Thanks, Solidarity, and yes Love.
***********
More listings on website (wnypeace.org) and in previous email posts.
To subscribe, write to weeklynews@wnypeace.org with “subscribe” in subject line.
To unsubscribe, write to weeklynews@wnypeace.org with “unsubscribe” in subject line. (Sorry for occasional delays!)
Please submit possible listings for consideration to weeklynews@wnypeace.org.
The time is now, and we are the people we’ve been waiting for.
And remember to tune in: DEMOCRACY NOW! IS NOW BEING BROADCASTMONDAY-FRIDAY, 8AM-9AM (LIVE) ON WBNY 91.3FM. Hear it over the radio or streaming live at wbny.buffalostate.edu.
Thank you to everyone who came out in solidarity with the victims of the New Zealand mass shooting. We continue to work towards peace, solidarity, understanding and harmony locally and in the world.
Thank you also to everyone who came out to our Women’s March events, including the discussion and forum Wednesday evening. Both discussions were very fruitful in terms of how we can further the women’s movement in a spirit of solidarity, respect and equity. For those of you who still want to participate in the celebration of women internationally consider donating to one of the following agencies working with women worldwide. KIVA (women entrepeneurs)/ UNWomen.org / Mothers Club of Haiti / Momsdemandaction.org (gun control) /makala.org / UNICEF.org (keeping girls in school). Also consider getting involved with the Gender Justice Taskforce or even the Economic Justice Taskforce or any of the other taskforces; women’s rights is an intersectional issue. Email us at info@wnypeace.org for more information or to get involved. In addition, Women’s Month is still in full effect. You can find Women’s Month events at
More Women’s History Month events at http://www2.erie.gov/csw/index.php?q=feature/2019-womens-history-month-calendar-events. More specifically http://www2.erie.gov/csw/sites/www2.erie.gov.csw/files/uploads/2019-WHM-Calendar.pdf.
Thank you to all who came out to our monthly Racial Justice Taskforce meeting yesterday.
Please save the date for 3/26, 12:30-1:30pm, we will be asking peace supporters to call in to the office of Congressperson Brian Higgins to support our demands for furthering peace on behalf of and within the U.S.
**We have extended the deadline to receive Board nominations for the WNY Peace Center. Please forward any suggestions to nominations@wnypeace.org. Thank you.**
As usual, this week brings us new opportunities to work towards peace through justice!
Events this week:
Stop Pipelines: Northern Access(NAPL)/FM100 Project
March 18-21 @ 5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
FERC invites the public to attend and speak out on either/both projects in Pennsylvania. For more info, contact 570-682-3125. Check out WNYPC listing for Monday, March 18-21, 2019 for specific location information.
Fundraising/Dinner Committee Mtg
March 18 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
WNYPC’s Fundraising and Annual Dinner Committee Meeting, at 1272 Delaware (entrance & pkg round back).
Social Media Workshop
March 18 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
This workshop will help people to use social media to better advantage. At the WNYPC/NRC building, 1272 Delaware Ave, Buffalo (entrance & parking round back behind building).
Fly Kites Not Drones
March 21 @ 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
At LaSalle Park (by Lake Erie, near the bandshell). On March 21, Nowruz – the biggest holiday of the year in Afghanistan, we will fly kites in solidarity with the peoples of Afghanistan, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Pakistan, Palestine, Algeria, and more who have suffered mightily under the constant threat of weaponized drones.
Many more events on the calendar!
Many thanks, peace, solidarity, and yes – Love
We shall overcome #Unitethestruggles #Loveislove #PowerWITH-NOTPowerOver
No hate, no fear as we are #StillResisting. Peace, Thanks, Solidarity, and yes Love.
***********
More listings on calendar (wnypeace.org) and in previous posts.
To subscribe, write to weeklynews@wnypeace.org with “subscribe” in subject line.
To unsubscribe, write to weeklynews@wnypeace.org with “unsubscribe” in subject line. (Sorry for occasional delays!)
Please submit possible listings for consideration to weeklynews@wnypeace.org.
The time is now, and we are the people we’ve been waiting for.
And remember to tune in: DEMOCRACY NOW! IS NOW BEING BROADCASTMONDAY-FRIDAY, 8AM-9AM (LIVE) ON WBNY 91.3FM. Hear it over the radio or streaming live at wbny.buffalostate.edu.
