Latest info on September 15 march in DC

[SharonRB]

Just received this from Ramsey Clark. Unfortunately, ANSWER is going to be involved to some degree, but there are lots of other groups involved.



September 15 in Washington DC:
You can help make history!

Below is an important message from former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark about the upcoming September 15 mass march and rally in Washington DC. ImpeachBush.org, the organization Ramsey Clark founded, and hundreds of other impeachment organizations are mobilizing with the anti-war movement for the September 15 Mass March. September 15 is when General David Petraeus makes his report to Congress about the Iraq war. Congress is expected to debate and vote on the question of Iraq war funding in mid-September. The latest this decision can come is Friday, September 28 - the last business day in the 2007 fiscal year. The impeachment movement is bringing thousands of people to join with the anti-war movement on September 15 to insist that Congress uphold its Constitutional mandate and introduce articles of impeachment against George W. Bush and Dick Cheney for High Crimes and Misdemeanors. Be in Washington DC on September 15 to make your voice heard!

"Each and every one of us must do all that we can to support the major Peace/Impeachment demonstration in Washington, DC on September 15, 2007, backed by more than a million votes for impeachment, and accelerating. The rally will begin at 12 noon at the White House, followed by a march to the Capitol.

"You can be one in a million demanding the impeachment of the Bush/Cheney cabal if you act fast. More than 929,000 have voted to Impeach at ImpeachBush.org and more are pouring in by the hour. There are only six weeks left before the major Peace and Impeachment rally on September 15, 2007 in Washington. We intend to reach the first Million by then."


Sincerely,
Ramsey Clark

Click here to read the full message from Ramsey Clark. http://www.pephost.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8571

Make an urgently
needed donation today





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~ A Message from Medea Benjamin ~
Cofounder, CODEPINK and Global Exchange

"What could General Petraeus say in his report to Congress, due September 15, that would make us support the occupation of Iraq? NOTHING. That’s why it’s so critical to be out in the streets of Washington, en masse, on September 15, to tell Congress 'No More Excuses, Period. End the Occupation, Impeach Bush and Cheney.'"



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~ A Message from Navy Petty Officer J. Hutto, Sr. ~
from the Appeal For Redress

"I urge everyone to join me and other active duty servicemembers, veterans and their families on September 15 in Washington DC. The invasion of Iraq by the United States is an attack against humanity. It is an attack against the people of Iraq killing over 700,000 and destroying their way of life. It is an attack against the people of America, killing over 3,000 troops, maiming tens of thousands and burdening Americans at the expense of healthcare, education, jobs and justice. ..."



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~ Join thousands for the Sept. 15 Mass March in DC ~

A broad spectrum of national groups have united to mobilize for a massive fall Peace/Impeachment mobilization called the Days of Action. September 15-21 will be a major showdown in Washington, DC at the very moment that the Petraeus Report is released and Congress takes up spending over $100 billion to prolong the war. Launched with a huge March on Washington on September 15, led by veterans who have returned from Iraq, there will be seven days of actions to send a shockwave through Washington and the nation with the reverberating demand: End the War Now!

At a July 18 planning meeting of the September 15 Coalition held in Washington DC, representatives from Veterans for Peace (VFP), Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, National Council of Arab Americans, CODEPINK, Grassroots America, Democracy Rising, Howard University student leaders, ImpeachBush.org, National Lawyers Guild, ANSWER Coalition and others came together to plan a powerful mobilization at this critical moment to bring the war to an end. The groups have all agreed to bring their respective constituencies together and at the meeting made plans for the September 15 March on Washington DC. The march will be led by veterans returned from Iraq and their families, and will include a major and dramatic die-in of thousands. It will be followed by days of protest and direct action which will take place in Washington DC and elsewhere from September 16-21.

On July 18, Cindy Sheehan was on the road in the middle of her Journey for Humanity March but she too will be with us in Washington DC on September 15. U.S. Labor Against the War (USLAW) and others in the labor movement are also supporting the September 15 action. Malik Rahim of the Common Ground Collective in New Orleans, Ramsey Clark, Howard Zinn, and hundreds of other organizations and prominent leaders are also involved in the September 15 March on Washington.

It was decided at the July 18 planning meeting that all organizations would work within a unified structure and framework, and that different organizations would provide leadership and act as the anchor for different parts of the September 15-21 actions. A web site has been created to promote the September 15 March and all the other activities that will be organized in Washington DC between September 15-21: http://www.Sept15.org . An invitation is also open to all other organizations to join in this coalition or to endorse the activities.

We urge every organization to join in this effort. To register your support for the September 15 march and the actions scheduled in the days following September 15, click on this link.http://www.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=S15_endorse



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~ Buses from across the country ~

People are traveling to be in Washington DC on Saturday, September 15 from across they country. They are coming by bus, car, van, train, plane - every form of transportation possible - from the East Coast, South, Midwest and West Coast!

Contact the Sept. 15 Bus/Transportation Center in your area and buy your bus ticket now! You can do so by clicking here to get a list of transportation contacts. http://www.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=S15_transportation

If you can become a Transportation Center and help bring others to Washington, you can sign up to do so by clicking here. http://www.pephost.org/site/PageServer?pagename=S15_organize




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~ Get involved ~

Do one or more of the following.

YES, I can join the mass march in Washington DC on September 15. Click this link to sign up. http://answer.pephost.org/site/Survey?SURVEY_ID=4040&ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS

YES, I will participate in the mass Die-In/Funeral. Click this link to sign up.http://answer.pephost.org/site/Survey?SURVEY_ID=4000&ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS There will be information packets about logistics and legal Know Your Rights information sent to all those participating. The National Lawyers Guild Mass Defense Committee and the Partnership for Civil Justice will be providing legal support for the demonstration.

YES, I can help with a tax-deductible donation. Click this link. https://secure2.convio.net/pepib/site/Donation?ACTION=SHOW_DONATION_OPTIONS&CAMPAIGN_ID=1102&JServSessionIdr011=qu28dke77c.app1b

[yasmina27]

1. I'm not sure why ANSWER is a problem

We were also at the protest on the Pentagon in March, and besides being MUCH colder than in Jan. (not sure we can blam ANSWER for that! LOL), it wasn't a whole lot different from the one in January - except for the lack of meet-up for DU, which we sorely missed!

[SharonRB]

2. I wasn't there in March

ANSWER was a problem at the September '05 march. They basically hijacked it -- their speakers kept going on and on and on and were totally off-topic. The march also got started late because their speakers went on for so long while we all stood there waiting to start walking.

They weren't involved in January and it was much, much better and more organized.

:hi:

Are you coming again?

[yasmina27]

3. I'm sorry to hear that

I guess I really don't know if the same thing happened in March. We took our girls (9 & 10 yo at the time) to the protest in March, and we were mostly concerned with watching them, making sure they understood what was happening, and protecting them from asshole freepers.

It was amazing how much attention they got! People were incredibly happy to see young kids there, learning about our rights in this country (such as they are anymore). I was very proud of our 10 yr. old. She had allowed someone to put an Impeach Bush sticker on the back of her coat for the march. On the drive home the next day, she asked if she should take the sticker off before school on Monday. I told her that it was up to her, that she had a right to express her opinion, and if she got in trouble at school I would back her 100%. Unfortunately, she took it off, but she recognized that we live in a Bushbot area, and that she would likely have problems with her friends. At her age, the stigma of not belonging outweighed her young political beliefs.

One of her friends was here a few months ago during the spring debate over war funding. She knows our beliefs, and the little shit said <paraphrasing here> "yeah, the democrats want us to surrender". OK, she's parroting what she hears at home and I am NOT going to argue w/a 10 yo!

I REALLY want to come on Sept. 15, just have to talk dh into it. Not that he doesn't want to, but we overspent on our surprise vacation to Disney for the kids this summer. He's the bearded guy in my video holding the "Republicans against the War" sign.

[Road2DC]

15. Maybe we can help

I don't know where you are, but we are trying to organize carpools to help defray expenses and get people to DC for the March. We currently have people driving to DC from several different points (CO, DE OH, PA, NJ, IL, MI) - maybe you could ride with one of them? Or set up your own carpool? Road2DC

[Puregonzo1188]

4. I was at both Marches also and was also at the September '05 March

There was a big difference in the January and March rallies. Everyone at the January rally, with two exceptions, spoke on the Iraq War. Near the end of the ANSWER rally, or at least up until the point when I left as I had 103 degree fever and it was 30 degrees outside (I lack basic common sense when comes to things like if you have a fever don't march in the cold), no one was speaking about the Iraq War. It was Haiti, the Philippines, immigration, the wonders of the regime in Cuba, and then as I was leaving Nicaragua. The problem with this is that not everyone shares ANSWER's positions on issues other the war on Iraq.

[SharonRB]

5. Exactly!

This was my issue with them in '05. Hopefully it will be different this time.

[evlbstrd]

6. I'm thinking about going.

ANSWER concerns me, though. They really did screw up September '05.
It'd be worth it for the meet-up, though.

[SharonRB]

7. Absolutely, evl!

You've got to come. I'm not letting ANSWER stop me. I can ignore them. I hope you decide to come and bring some of those other KC folks with you!

[VolcanoJen]

9. You're spot-on about ANSWER....

... and I'm encouraged that this march seems very all-encompassing. DU Meetup! This is a very important march and we've really got to spread awareness.

[spiderpig]

8. Meeting you in Jan. was one of the high points of the event, evl!

You've gotta be there.

[Puregonzo1188]

10. Don't let ANSWER get in the way, its more important to have a large

and successful protest then to worry about things like ANSWER. I mean sure they did screw up the end of the rally in September 05, but they didn't screw up the march overall or diminish the fact that we had 600,000 people in the streets of DC protesting the war. I mean I was annoyed with the rally and walked away from the stage to look around after the fifth speaker about something other then the Iraq War, but it didn't bother me. I didn't even think about the silly rally people until later in the day when I returned to DU and found out that all from all the armchair protesters who had watched the rally on CSPAN that the entire protest was completely ruined and no good was accomplished by anything that happened that day. Of course, that's not true, because even though there was shamefully little media coverage, what little there was did not mention ANSWER, Palestine, communism, or Haiti. Instead it mentioned that "10s of thousands" protested the war in Iraq. That's what's important.

[SharonRB]

13. I absolutely agree.

I hope you'll join us at our meetup Friday night and march with us on Saturday.

[Puregonzo1188]

11. One last thing on the ANSWER involvement, I heard from someone

in the know that although it started out as an ANSWER thing that Iraq Veterans Against the War had taken over the organizational process and to expect something "very different." However, I'm still very, very skeptical and will not hold my breathe. Of course, that won't stop me from going and should stop anyone else either.

[spiderpig]

12. Excellent post, Puregonzo1188.

Hope to see you at the meetup Friday night.:hi:

[Puregonzo1188]

14. Sorry to disappoint you Catnapper, but I won't be going ot the meetup

Friday night. However, I will be at the March either with some friends from school or some people I used to work with at the Student Peace Action Network. Maybe I'll run into the DU contingent by chance.