OPEN LETTER TO MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OF
THE SAN FRANCISCO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT:
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
Dear all,
I was very disappointed by the
March 8th meeting of the Board of Education.
I don't understand why the two
military men from JROTC got at least twice as
much time to speak as all 14 of
us anti-recruitment folks put together.
It seems they were given as much
time as they wanted and they said nothing.
Now I understand the March 17 meeting
has been changed and will take up
school closures instead, or that we
will have to share the time with this
equally urgent issue.
It is very awkward for us since we
are against any school closures. We feel
school closures are directly tied to
the billions spent on war just as the
military recruitment is tied to this
same horror.
As the Campus Antiwar Network put
it recently, "The counter-recruitment
movement is growing faster than the
military can recruit!" This should tell
you how important this issue is to
the community at large (If the
Proposition N vote didn't already tell you.)
We feel the issue of the war and the
military war budget overrides all other
issues having to do with lack of funds
for social services such as our
schools and hospitals, etc.
Not only is the giant U.S. War machine
robbing the coffers to kill and maim
an entire country and region, but
they want to use our kids to do it while
sacrificing their education!
We say HELL NO!
It is imperative for us to collaborate
in our efforts to turn this whole
situation around and demand that
the military budget be used for schools,
housing, healthcare-not for recruiting
our kids to kill and be killed in an
illegal and horribly unjust war.
All the antiwar groups in the city
are working together on this issue. And
there is a groundswell of protest
growing about it because of the war. You,
the leaders of our schools must take a stand with us.
Our group along with many others
has brainstormed all the things that could
be accomplished by the board; there
could be assemblies at each school
several times a year about the military
and alternatives to violence as a
way to solve problems-especially
political ones. We could have required
programs for parents to inform them
in person about the risks of the
military for their child and the urgent
need to get more money for schools,
etc.
The whole School District should march
in a contingent together March 19th
to demand an end to the war and to
bring the troops home now. We have
thought of hundreds of things the
schools in partnership with the board
could do to stop kids from going into
the military and getting both kids and
parents involved in a movement to
demand enough money for our schools
instead of more ammunition and
cannon fodder for the military.
As my mother said, "It will be a great
day when the schools get all the
money they need and the Navy has
to hold a bake-sale to buy a ship."
This issue is not going to go away.
And we don't care about being appointed
to any "advisory board." We will continue
to go to these meetings until we
get some results. We demand a full
and thorough discussion on these urgent
issues. We demand that we get
more than a minute to speak about them. The
war is a fundamental issue for all
of us if we are to survive as a
species-don't kid yourself or be
in denial. This is the sad and terrifying
reality of our world today.
Our job as parents, grandparents,
aunts, uncles, teachers is to give our
children the necessary tools to live
a full and productive life. Not to die
in a greedy and unjust war that
devastates millions and benefits only a tiny
few of the very wealthiest and privileged among us.
Please give this your immediate
and full attention. This is a job for all of
us together. We want to have
a thorough and full discussion with the Board.
Peace and solidarity,
Bonnie Weinstein, Bay Area United Against War
Www.bauaw.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
555 Franklin St.
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.
2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY
3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
Bring the Troops Home Now!
Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON-POWERFUL ANTIWAR MOVIES
5) IRA Must Go, Demand Britain and U.S. (link only)
By Alex Richardson
BELFAST, Northern Ireland (Reuters)
2 hours, 36 minutes ago
March 9,2005
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&e=1&u=/nm/20050309/wl_nm/irish_dc
6) US officer: 'Why I disagree (link only)
with Bush's war for oil'
Brayden joined the US army not thinking he'd ever be sent
to war. He certainly hadn't entertained the idea that he
would turn against a war.
http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/618/618p12.htm
7) Subject: [MilLawTF] Sole Surviving Child -- or Lies
My Recruiter Told Me! From:
Harold Jordan
Date: March 8, 2005 8:36:54 AM PST
To: MLTF full list
MLTF SC
Reply-To: MilLawTF@yahoogroups.com
8) NEWS: *USA Today* on Army Guard recruitment -
and on counter-recruitment
(with additional links)
9) FOR GUARD RECRUITERS, A TOUGH SELL (link only)
By Dave Moniz
USA Today
March 8, 2005
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-07-recruits-cover_x.htm
10) GLOBAL EXCHANGE ANTIWAR TEACH-IN MARCH 24
On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the
Vietnam War.
NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
$5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away for lack of funds.
11) Students Protest Military Recruitment
by Lachlan Maclean and William Roller staff writers
March 9, 2005 04:51 PM
A protest at San Francisco State University forces military
Recruiters to leave campus early without any recruits!
Read about it in theschool's newspaper, The Golden Gate [X]press.
There is also VIDEO online! Scroll to the bottom of this e-mail for links.
http://xpress.sfsu.edu/archives/breaking/003099.html
12) CITY COLLEGE STUDENT COUNTER-RECRUITERS
CHARGED WITH FELONY ASSAULT
March 9, 2005
Counter Recruitment Watch
Projects from Peace No War Network
URL: http://www.PeaceNoWar.net
13) Ex-Marine Says Public Version of
Saddam Capture Fiction
United Press International
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
1) BAN THE MILITARY FROM OUR SCHOOLS!
Thursday, March 17th, 7 P.M.:
555 Franklin St.
To get on the speakers list call:
415-241-6427, 241-6493 or 241-6000,
Wednesday, March 16th from 8-4 p.m. and
Thursday, March 17th from 8-3 p.m.
This is a "meeting of the whole"
devoted solely to Military Recruitment
and JROTC in our schools. It is a dialogue
between the community and the School Board.
Everyone is invited to participate in these
important meetings.
BAUAW has submitted the following resolution to the board:
Draft Resolution for San Francisco Board of Education
Cut Ties with the Military:
WHEREAS, the United States military is
actively recruiting high school students into
the military to fight in Iraq; and
WHEREAS, many young San Francisco
high school alumni are presently serving in
military units fighting in Iraq; and
WHEREAS, it is San Francisco City policy
by virtue of Proposition N, to bring all U.S.
troops home from Iraq now; and
WHEREAS, over 1,448 U.S. soldiers and
approximately 100,000 Iraqis have been
killed in this war and over 10,000 U.S.
soldiers and unknown thousands of
Iraqis have been wounded; and
WHEREAS, the hundreds of billions of dollars
spent on the war have robbed our children of
resources that should be spent on
education and other human needs; and
WHEREAS, military presence in our schools
legitimizes the message that violence is
acceptable;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
It shall be the policy of the San Francisco
Board of Education to cut all ties
with the United States military,
including, but not limited to: Ending military
recruitment on campuses; ending the
Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps
(JROTC); and guaranteeing that all students
and parents are informed of their right to
deny military recruiters access to their
names, addresses and telephone numbers.
Bay Area United Against War (BAUAW)
www.bauaw.org
414-824-8730
Donations are urgently needed to carry
out this important work. We have no
paid staff but need money for posters,
buttons, flyers and informational material
to hand out to students and parents.
Make a tax-deductible donation to:
Bay Area United Against War/NVM
P.O. Box 318021
San Francisco, CA 94131-8021
Coming Up:
Global Day of Action
March 19, 2005
No to War and Occupation in Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
Bring the Troops Home Now!
Money for People's Needs, Not War!
San Francisco March Assembles:
11 a.m. Dolores Park
Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
THE NEXT BAUAW MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE:
SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 11:30AM
474 VALENCIA STREET, SF
(FIRST FLOOR, TO THE LEFT AND ALL THE WAY BACK
TO THE COMPANEROS DEL BARRIO CHILDREN'S CENTER)
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
2) WE ALL STAND WITH LYNNE STEWART!
NO JAIL TIME FOR LYNNE!
PLEASE WRITE LETTERS TODAY:
SUGGESTION AS TO FORMAT OF LETTERS
TO BE WRITTEN ON BEHALF OF LYNNE STEWART
MARGIN: Please leave at least a one-inch left-hand margin to
allow us to bind the letter into the appendix to the sentencing
memorandum that is being filed on
Lynne's behalf.
INSIDE ADDRESS: Honorable John G. Koeltl
United States District Judge
Southern District of New York
United States Courthouse
500 Pearl Street
New York, New York 10007
GREETING: Honorable Sir or Dear Judge Koeltl:
BODY: Briefly introduce yourself and set forth your
relationship to Lynne.
Briefly discuss yourself - your position in work and
in society.
State that you are aware that Lynne is to be sentenced
following a jury verdict of guilty on serious charges:
The remainder of your letter should discuss whatever
you believe to weigh in favor of no jail time. If possible,
you should tell of an incident where she helped you
out or engaged in commendable community service.
Do not try to argue that she is not guilty or was
unfairly conviction. Focus on the unfairness of the
government's actions in bringing the charges; the
way in which the government portrayed her, etc.
* Typewritten letters if possible are preferred.
*
WHEN LETTER IS COMPLETED: Please mail the final
product to the following address:
Jill R. Shellow-Lavine, Esq.
2537 Post Road
Southport, CT 06890
Do not send your letters to the judge. We ask
that you forward your letter me so that the
lawyers can present it to Judge Koeltl with the
other letters being written for this purpose. This
is the manner in which letters will have the greatest
impact. If they are sent directly to the Judge's
chambers, they may have less of an impact and
could cause the judge a substantial inconvenience
(and annoyance).
Thank you for your cooperation. If you have
any questions, please do not hesitate to
contact the defense committee at www.lynnestewart.org.
Sincerely,
Jill R. Shellow-Lavine
Attorney for Lynne Stewart
For more information go to:
www.LynneStewart.org
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
3) March 19, 2005 Global Day of Action
No to War Occupation ˆ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere!
Bring the Troops Home Now!
Money for People‚s Needs, Not War!
San Francisco: March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
· Urgent appeal for volunteers on March 19
· Volunteer opportunities this weekend.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
March 19, 2005: Global Day of Action - San
Francisco - Volunteers Needed!
No to War Occupation ˜ Iraq, Palestine, Haiti,
Afghanistan, Cuba Everywhere! Bring the Troops
Home Now! Money for People's Needs, Not War!
March Assembles: 11 a.m. Dolores Park
Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
Send this email to as many friends as you can.
March 19, 2005, will be an International Day of Protest
on the second anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
As on the first anniversary of the invasion last year,
millions of people around the world will march to say
„No to War and Occupation from Iraq to Palestine to
Haiti and Everywhere.‰
Volunteers are urgently needed in San Francisco on
March 19 to help with set-up, distributing placards to
spread the anti-war message, carrying banners for the
march, selling buttons and t-shirts to pay for the march,
leafleting to let people know how to get involved, take
down, monitoring, clean up and more.
Friends, families, and work groups can volunteer
in teams! Take a stand on March 19 against war
and occupation!
Come to the next Volunteer Orientation at the ANSWER
Activist Meeting on Tuesday March 15th at 7pm,
2489 Mission Street Room #30. Also with:
· Political update
· Volunteer sessions: banner painting, postering teams,
alert calls
· March 19 volunteer orientation discussion session.
No experience necessary! Whether you have volunteered
before or this is your first time your help is urgently
needed. Call 415-821-6545 for more information and
directions to this meeting.
If you cannot make the orientation, you can still
volunteer to help make March 19 Day of Global
Action protest happen:
Come to Dolores Park at 9 a.m. the morning of March 19
and sign in at the Volunteer ANSWER table to get the latest
orientation and take on an area of work for the protest.
Dolores Park is located at 18th and Dolores St. near the
16th St. BART station.
OR
Come to the Civic Center at 9 a.m. the morning of March 19
for a volunteer orientation and to get plugged in. Take BART
to Civic Center. Look for the sign-in table under the
ANSWER Volunteer banner.
Volunteers are needed ALL DAY. Any amount of time you
have to help is greatly appreciated.
Together we‚re building a powerful new movement against
war and racism. You‚re needed in the struggle to win money
for peoples‚ needs, not war and corporate greed. Email, call
or come to the volunteer orientation. Get involved today.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
Don‚t miss this weekend‚s volunteer opportunity!
Sat. Mar. 12 ˆ 11 am in San Francisco at our office
2489 Mission St. Rm. 24. Get out in the sun or spend time
painting while you contribute your time to the anti-war
movement. Volunteer banner painting session and postering
teams going out around town.
Sat. Mar 12 ˆ 12 ˆ 12:30 pm in Oakland meet others in the
MacArthur BART parking lot to join a postering team to
spread the word about the protest. Organizer‚s cell phone
number: 925-917-1039, call for location details.
To subscribe to the list, send a message to:
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
4) COMING TO THE BAY AREA SOON ARE SOME POWERFUL
ANTIWAR MOVIES
"Mission Accomplished" is a brutally vivid documentary
filmed entirely on the ground in Iraq. The reality of this
war for American troops is contrasted to the
overwhelming reality of the devastation felt and experienced
by the people of Iraq.
"Mission Accomplished" will open March 18th:
4 Star
2200 Clement St.
San Francisco, CA 94121
415.666.3488
"Voices In Wartime" is a compelling portrayal of human
experience with war through poetry, both from the point
of view of those who were in combat and those who are left
behind.
"Voices In Wartime" will play in S.F. on April 15th at:
Landmark Lumiere 3
1572 California Street
San Francisco, CA 94109
[This poem by fourth-grader Cameron Penny was read
by Marie Howe in this very beautiful film
directed by Rick King.
"If you are lucky in this life
A window will appear on a battlefield between two armies
And when the soldiers look into the window
They don't see their enemies
They see themselves as children
And they stop fighting
And go home and go to sleep
When they wake up, the land is well again."
By Cameron Penny]
To learn more about these film visit
Cinema Libre Studio
http://www.cinemalibrestudio.com/
Also: check out, GUNNER PALACE |
Some war stories will never make the nightly news.
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
5) IRA Must Go, Demand Britain and U.S. (link only)
By Alex Richardson
BELFAST, Northern Ireland (Reuters)
2 hours, 36 minutes ago
March 9,2005
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&e=1&u=/nm/20050309/wl_nm/irish_dc
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
6) US officer: 'Why I disagree (link only)
with Bush's war for oil'
Brayden joined the US army not thinking he'd ever be sent
to war. He certainly hadn't entertained the idea that he
would turn against a war.
http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/618/618p12.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
7) Subject: [MilLawTF] Sole Surviving Child -- or Lies
My Recruiter Told Me! From:
Harold Jordan
Date: March 8, 2005 8:36:54 AM PST
To: MLTF full list
MLTF SC
Reply-To: MilLawTF@yahoogroups.com
A few year ago I published this piece on the web. I've been searching
for the text for some weeks. I thought it might be helpful to folks-
Marti Hiken
A military recruiter told me that my son could sign up for the military
but not be sent to war because he is an only child. Is this true?
Contrary to what is often said by recruiters, no restrictions are
automatically placed on the assignment of only children. They
can be sent to war zones. Unfortunately this myth is widespread.
No restrictions are automatically placed on the assignment of
a service member to a war zone due solely to the fact of he or
she being an only child. The services do have a special provision
for "sole surviving sons or daughters," but this category is defined
in a very narrow way. A "sole surviving son or daughter" is the
only remaining son or daughter in a family where an immediate
family member has died as a result of service, is missing in
action (MIA), a prisoner of war (POW), or is 100% disabled and
unemployable as a consequence of military service.
This "sole surviving son or daughter" may request a discharge
from the service except in a period of war or national emergency
declared by Congress. A service member may forfeit this right
to be separated if he or she chooses to remain on duty or
re-enlist after he or she becomes aware of this discharge
provision. The military tries to screen for this possibility by
asking a question on the military enlistment documents.
The services do not want this issue to come up later for
someone who might have fallen into this category before
he or she enlisted.
Much of what the public has come to think about this issue
stems from the controversy surrounding the Sullivan family
tragedy during WWII. Two Sullivan brothers were among
700 sailors that died in the sinking of the Juneau near
Guadalcanal in November, 1942. At the time, the Navy
called the deaths,"the greatest single blow suffered by
one family...in American naval history." According to
current policy, siblings may serve in a war zone as long
as they are in different units.
The above exceptions apply to a small number of persons,
not to the average person who joins the military. Recruiters
should know better than to mislead young people and
their loved ones.
Harold Jordan
Executive Director
National Coalition of Education Activists
1420 Walnut St., Suite 720
Philadelphia, PA 19102
215-735-2418
www.edactivists.org
• To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MilLawTF/
National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force
Marguerite Hiken, co-chair
318 Ortega Street
San Francisco, CA 94122
415-566-3732
mlhiken@pacbell.net
Kathleen Gilberd, co-chair
1168 Union Street, Ste. 302
San Diego, CA 92101
619-233-1701
KathleenGilberd@aol.com
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
8) NEWS: *USA Today* on Army Guard recruitment -
and on counter-recruitment
(with additional links)
[On Tuesday, *USA Today* published figures showing that the Army National
Guard fell 12.6% short of its recruiting target in 2003 and 12.1% short of its
recruiting goal in fiscal 2004.[1] -- In 2005, the target has been raised
12.5%, but "through January, four months into the recruiting year that began
in October, the Guard had recruited just 12,821 new soldiers, almost 24% below
its target for that period." -- The Marine Corps failed to meet it overall
recruiting goal in January and February for the first time in almost ten
years, and the active-duty Army is so far 6% below its target for the year.
-- "By contrast, the Navy and Air Force are having no trouble recruiting,"
according to *USA Today* reporter Dave Moniz, who noted: "Those branches play
only a small role in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan." -- *USA Today* also
published a longer, 1,300-word article on counter-recruitment: the effort to
inform potential recruits fully about the significance and consequences of
enlisting in the military.[2] -- A link and comment have been inserted
pertaining to San Diego Committee v. Governing Bd., the 1986 Ninth Circuit of
Appeals decision that is currently the legal decision governing
counter-recruiters' claim a right to enter schools; for more information on
counter-recruitment, see the resources listed by the Western Mass. AFSC.
(http://www.westernmassafsc.org/CR/counter_recruitment.html) -- Also, a
Yahoo group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/counter-recruitment/) on
counter-recruitment activities has existed since 2000. -- Thanks to Tim
Smith for sending the *USA Today* piece on counter-recruitment. --Mark]
http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/2397/
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
9) FOR GUARD RECRUITERS, A TOUGH SELL (link only)
By Dave Moniz
USA Today
March 8, 2005
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-07-recruits-cover_x.htm
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
10) GLOBAL EXCHANGE ANTIWAR TEACH-IN MARCH 24
On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the
Vietnam War.
NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
$5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away
for lack of funds.
Dear UFPJ Bay Area,
On March 24th, Global Exchange is sponsoring a major anti-war
teach-in that will be held at Mission High School. This teach-in
(and teach-ins scheduled for the same day in Washington, DC
and Ann Arbor, Michigan) is being held in remembrance of the
wave of teach-ins about the Vietnam war starting in 1965 that
began the long awakening that led to the US public shaking
off the Vietnam war makers.
Please spread the word about the teach-in, and, of course
about the March 19 protest that ANSWER is organizing in SF
for the two-year anniversary of the Iraq invasion. The teach-in
won't just be people talking at the audience; we'll have
presentations by a panel and then break into smaller groups
for deeper discussion and strategizing.
Hope to see you there,
Andrea Buffa
Global Exchange
P.S. This is part of the education campaign adopted by
UFPJ at the recent national assembly.
**************************************************************
**Please forward widely.**
On the 40th Anniversary of the first teach-in on the Vietnam War
NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?
Thursday, March 24, 7:00 PM
Mission High School, 3750 18th Street (at Dolores)
$5 requested donation; Free for students; No one turned away
for lack of funds.
Two years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the country continues
to bleed and suffer. The death toll soars on all sides and
especially among civilians. The cost of the war mounts daily
as vital services are cut at home. But many questions remain:
Did the January 2005 elections improve the situation in
Iraq? Is the US troop presence in Iraq helping stabilize the
country, or is it at the root of Iraq's deadly violence? And
what are the true costs of the war at home - its impact on
military families and returning veterans, its $200+ billion
price tag, and the looting of our economy by militarist
corporations?
Join people throughout the country as we consider these
issues and others at teach-ins in San Francisco,
Washington, DC, and Ann Arbor, marking the 40th
anniversary of the first Vietnam War teach-in in 1965.
Featured Speakers include:
•Rahul Mahajan, Anti-war Activist and Author of Full
Spectrum Dominance: U.S. Power in Iraq and Beyond
•Cindy Sheehan, mother of fallen Iraq war soldier, Co-
Founder of Gold Star Parents for Peace, and member
of Military Families Speak Out
•Fernando Suarez, father of fallen Iraq war soldier,
Founder of Guerrero Azteca Project and member of
Gold Star Parents for Peace
•Aimee Allison, Gulf War conscientious objector,
counter recruiter, and Oakland City Council candidate
•Howard Wallace, San Francisco Labor Council, National
Board of Pride at Work, and Steering Committee of
US Labor Against the War
•Sean O'Neil, US Veteran of the Iraq War and purple-
heart recipient
•Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder of Global Exchange
and CODEPINK: Women for Peace
Sponsored By Global Exchange
For more information: www.globalexchange.org
or call (415) 255-7296.
AND DON'T FORGET:
March 19, 2005: Global Day of Action-No to
War & Occupation
San Francisco March Assembles:
11 a.m. Dolores Park; Rally: 1 p.m. Civic Center
---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*
11) Students Protest Military Recruitment
by Lachlan Maclean and William Roller staff writers
March 9, 2005 04:51 PM
A protest at San Francisco State University forces military
Recruiters to leave campus early without any recruits!
Read about it in theschool's newspaper, The Golden Gate [X]press.
There is also VIDEO online! Scroll to the bottom of this e-mail for links.
http://xpress.sfsu.edu/archives/breaking/003099.html
U.S. military recruiters left a campus career fair an hour early on
March 9 after extensive student demonstrations for and against
military recruitment.
Over 100 students surrounded U.S. Air Force and Army Corps of
Engineers recruiters' tables at the Career Center Employer Showcase at
Jack Adams Hall. A group of five College Republicans blocked
protesters and yelled "Don't join if you don't want to."
"Our military is racist, homophobic, sexist and screwing people," said
Students Against War (SAW) member Michael Hoffman, 24, a physics
major. "Recruitment on campus is wrong."
SAW members said they hoped the protest would rally students to take
action against recruiters on campus.
"We don't allow the recruiters on our campus because of the military's
discrimination of homosexuals," said Alex Schmaus, an environmental
studies sophomore. "(The) 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy ? goes
clearly against campus discriminatory policy. They shouldn't be on
campus."
Sarah Ballinger, liberal studies major, said the recruiters' early
departure was due to the protester's efforts.
"I think that if we weren't there, they would've stayed until
closing," said Ballinger. "They realized that we weren't going
anywhere and they weren't going to recruit anyone, so they left."
Support for SAW's protest was not unanimous, several College
Republicans waved banners that read, "You don't have to support the
war to support our military" and "end the commie occupation of SFSU."
Leigh Wolfe, 18, a broadcasting major and member of the College
Republicans said he was disappointed that students were not more
supportive of our nation's military.
"I wish they had a little more appreciation for what our troops are
doing overseas," said Wolfe. "They're fighting for us and dying to
protect us at home and (the protesters) are pretty much
anti-anything."
The two-day career expo was co-sponsored by the science and
engineering departments.Jack Brewer, the career center's director,
said the center treats all recruiters the same and doesn't distinguish
between corporations, non-profits or the military.
"It's my understanding that if a university would deny access by
military recruiters, that they could lose federal funding for
financial aid and also any funding from the department of defense,"
said Brewer.
"If there is a policy set up by the university about denying access to
(discriminatory employers) then obviously I'd have to follow that
policy. I'm not currently aware of any such policy."
Political Science professor James Martel said recruiters should be
kept off campus.
"The ban against gays in the military is pure discrimination, pure
bigotry on the part of the U.S. government with no rationale
whatsoever," Martel said. "It sends a signal to the entire nation that
it's OK to discriminate against lesbians and gay men."
Tyson Eckerele, a 25-year-old biologist with the Army Corps of
Engineering, couldn't recall any similar opposition or protests on
other college campuses.
"This hasn't happened to us before at UC Berkeley or at Stanford,"
said Eckerele, who is a self-described liberal.
According to Jim Fizzell, employee specialist at Stanford University's
Career Center, the Army has attended past career fairs on their
campus.
"There's never been a problem with them being here," said Fizzell
during a telephone interview. Brian Honeycutt, Master Sgt. and Air
Force recruiter, was undaunted by the SF State protesters.
"They have the right to protest peacefully if they want to," said
Honeycutt. "But we aren't leaving unless other employers want us to.
They can protest all day and we'll stay right here."
Most employers who paid to attend the fair respected the students'
right to express themselves, but some felt the protest detracted from
their goals at the job fair.
Nancy Peterson is a recruiter for John Muir and Mt. Diablo Health
Systems said the protest discouraged students from entering the job
fair and made the atmosphere uncomfortable.
"The temperature is about 98 degrees, we haven't seen any nursing
students, and you can't be heard over the yelling," said Peterson. "So
it's a bit disappointing for us here."
Peterson said her organization wasn't able to accomplish anything at
the fair and would definitely ask more questions before paying to
attend another job fair at SF State.
Pacific Medical Center recruiter Rachel Barnes has been to SF State
three times before.
"It was the most entertained I've been since I've been here," she said.
Jeff Boyette, an organizer with the International Socialist
Organization (ISO) at SF State, was pleased by the fact that the
recruiters left the career fair early. "Yes, it was indeed a success
because a lot of the students came out for this," said Boyette.
Ballinger said she wanted the military out of the school.
"They're a discriminatory organization that is taking our brothers and
sisters and classmates to a war for oil and empire," said Ballinger.
College Republicans vice-president Chris Finarelli demonstrated at
Malcolm X Plaza and at Jack Adams Hall.
"I support SAW's right to be here just like the Peace Corps has a
right to be here, just like the environmentalists who solicit me every
time I walk on campus here, just like UNICEF, they all have a right to
be here," Finarelli said.
"The military is an all voluntary organization, they're not soliciting
people they're simply sit behind the table with their hands in their
pockets and wait until somebody comes up and asks for some
information."
Ballinger said the recruiters' early departure was due to the
protester's efforts.
"I think that if we weren't there, they would've stayed until
closing," said Ballinger. "They realized that we weren't going
anywhere and they weren't going to recruit anyone, so they left."
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism
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12) CITY COLLEGE STUDENT COUNTER-RECRUITERS CHARGED
WITH FELONY ASSAULT
March 9, 2005
Counter Recruitment Watch
Projects from Peace No War Network
URL: http://www.PeaceNoWar.net
March 9, 2005
e-mail: wrigleyfield@nyu.edu
Press Conference:
Thursday March 10th 4pm
100 Centre Street, New York, NY
CONTACTS
Activist: Meredith Kolodner (917) 881-3896
Lawyers: Sean Maher, Darlene Jorif (212) 876-5500
WHO: City College Counter-Recruiters: Hadas Thier, Nicholas Bergreen,
Justino Rodriguez (pending their release) and their supporters:
representatives from civil liberties organizations, national anti-war
organizations, student anti-war organizations, veterans and military
family members, and the legal community
Three undergraduate students at the City College of New York (CCNY)
were arrested Wednesday in the course of a peaceful protest against
military recruiters. Hadas Thier, Nick Bergreen, and Justino
Rodriguez, along with approximately a dozen other protesters attended
a job fair organized by the college, and stood up in front of a
National Guard recruitment table chanting anti-war slogans. Private
security and campus peace officers immediately surrounded the
protesters, pushed them into an empty hallway outside of the job fair,
closed the hall door and assaulted two protesters and arrested a third
who was taking pictures. The two students who were assaulted are now
being charged with felony assault, and the third with obstruction of a
government administrator.
MILITARY RESPONDING TO COUNTER-RECRUITER'S SUCCESS
"Counter-recruitment" has become a national issue (USATODAY "Counter-
recruiters shadowing the military" 3/7/5), and it's working. Between
these efforts, and general disagreement about the war, recruitment is
down - according to a 3/6/5 Reuters report, "The regular Army is 6
percent behind its year-to-date recruiting target, the Reserve is 10
percent behind, and the Guard is 26 percent short."
After similar counter-recruitment efforts have taken off from New York
to Seattle, the military has clearly become concerned. At William
Patterson University in New Jersey an activist was arrested for simply
handing out counter-recruitment leaflets. Twice last semester, CCNY
student protesters drove military recruiters off the campus with
peaceful protests. This time campus security was ready. "We didn't
even get through one round of chanting," according to Tiffany Paul,
a junior at CCNY and a member of the Campus Anti-War Network,
who was one of the protesters. "We were completely peaceful, it
was the officers who were violent."
UNNECESSARY BRUTALITY
When Mr. Rodriguez was being arrested, his head was slammed into the
wall. He called out "look what they're doing to me!" According to Ms.
Paul, to silence him one of the guards pulled Mr. Rodriguez's hood
over his head and slammed his head into the wall
again.
"He just stood on the guy," remembers Mark Turner, a staff member at
CCNY, recalling the manner in which Mr. Bergreen was subdued by a
private security guard, Mr. Robertson. "His foot was on his back,
after he had tackled him. Private security are not supposed to touch
us."
Ms. Thier was arrested simply for taking pictures. Several witnesses
recall that the guards were pulling on her hair. Juan Alduey remembers
that the guards pushed Ms. Thier when she tried to give a statement to
students who began filming the event. "I'm being arrested for
exercising my right to free speech" Mr. Alduey recalled.
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13) Ex-Marine Says Public Version of
Saddam Capture Fiction
United Press International
A former U.S. Marine who participated in capturing ousted Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein said the public version of his capture was
fabricated.
Ex-Sgt. Nadim Abou Rabeh, of Lebanese descent, was quoted in the Saudi
daily al-Medina Wednesday as saying Saddam was actually captured Friday,
Dec. 12, 2003, and not the day after, as announced by the U.S. Army.
"I was among the 20-man unit, including eight of Arab descent, who
searched for Saddam for three days in the area of Dour near Tikrit, and
we found him in a modest home in a small village and not in a hole as
announced," Abou Rabeh said.
"We captured him after fierce resistance during which a Marine of
Sudanese origin was killed," he said.
He said Saddam himself fired at them with a gun from the window of a
room on the second floor. Then they shouted at him in Arabic: "You have
to surrender. ... There is no point in resisting."
"Later on, a military production team fabricated the film of Saddam's
capture in a hole, which was in fact a deserted well," Abou Rabeh said.
Abou Rabeh was interviewed in Lebanon.
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Resource:
MONEY FOR HUMAN NEEDS NOT WAR!
FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF SOCIAL SERVICES UNDER THE KNIFE
RIGHT NOW GO TO:
http://www.bauaw.org/2005/02/programs-eliminated-or-cut-in-2006.html
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