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LOCAL Commentary :: Peace

Open Call to the Chicago Peace Movement on Feeding the People of Iraq

An open call to the Chicago Peace Movement to turn our attentions to becoming a mass movement to help the starving people of Iraq rebuild the country our taxes detroyed.
I have been thinking lately how our anti-war movement has done little to feed the people of Iraq as our occupation intensifies conditions. In her recent letter from Baghdad, Kathy Kelly writes of the despairing conditions; many are homeless and most suffer for lack of food and clothing. (From Baghdad; A Better World chicago.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34958/index.php)


AN OPEN CALL TO THE CHICAGO PEACE MOVEMENT

An incredible amount of people have come out against this war, primarily for the reason that the people of Iraq will suffer so much for it. Now we read reports of how much they are suffering, how the country is not being rebuilt, how the schools are without windows,books and teachers, hospitals without medicine, and so on.

We have said No to War, and No to Occupation, but we also need to say Yes to Feeding the People of Iraq. How can we as a movement sit by while families live in the gutters? There has been talk on how best to pull out the troops, but too little talk and even less action on how to rebuild the country. Our government is not doing it, and we shouldn't wait nor expect them to. Our mass peace movement has the incredible potential to help the Iraqi people rebuild their country and I think we should. It would not be hard for us to help meet the basic needs of so many Iraqis; food and clothing.

I know that the AFSC has organized sanitary care packages for the people of Iraq, does anyone know if other groups have been organizing on this level as well?

This would be a good rallying point for our March 20th actions. What if we held our rally and march but also invited those coming to bring some of the much needed resources the people of Iraq need? Our march could end at a place with shipping containers, bound for Iraq.

Our action then becomes more than a media event where we once again appear only to be saying "NO"; it becomes a real action that says YES to helping our brothers and sisters in Iraq.

What do you think?
 
 

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