From: NY Transfer News <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Mon, 8 Oct 2001 14:00:52 -0400 (EDT)
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (NY Transfer News)
Subject: [CubaNews] In NYC, Thousands Rally & March for Peace
Via NY Transfer News * www.blythe.org * All the News That Doesn't Fit
IN NYC, THOUSANDS RALLY AND MARCH FOR PEACE
by Bill Koehnlein
New York, October 7 (NY Transfer)--Thousands of anti-war
demonstrators marched in New York City on Sunday in a protest made
more timely and urgent by the US bombing of Afghanistan that started
today.
The demonstration, which began barely two hours after the first bombs
were dropped, was organized by a broad coalition of peace, labor,
religious, political and social justice organizations that came
together just days after the attack on the World Trade Center to
discuss left and progressive responses to the impending threats of
war, racist backlashes against Arab Americans, and the erosion of
civil liberties.
The demonstrators, who reflected the diversity of New York City,
assembled at Union Square Park in lower Manhattan, barely two miles
from the site of the World Trade Center, for a march to Times Square.
Within a couple of days of the September 11 attack, Union Square had
become transformed into a memorial shrine to the Trade Center
victims, and its south plaza grew into an altar where people left
candles, flowers, photographs of missing friends or family members,
and signs and posters expressing their feelings about what had
happened. Since that time, the park has become the focal point for
many of New York's ongoing peace activities.
Some of the demonstrators were seasoned activists, and a contingent
from Veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade--US volunteers who
fought against fascism in Spain in the 1930s--received cheers as they
made their way towards Times Square. For others, this was their first
demonstration, and the feelings of many were summed up by a young
woman who said, "I don't know all the issues involved, or who's right
or wrong, but I know that war is no solution. It will only make
things worse, and I'm afraid."
While the focus of the demonstration was on peace generally--one of
the slogans of the day was "Our grief is not a cry for war"--many of
the people who turned out blamed United States foreign policy for the
crisis. "The American people have not been silenced," said Imam
Abdul-Baqi of the Islamic Leadership Council of New York. "They are
saying clearly to the president, 'We're against your policies. Stop
the arrogance and respect people and their rights.' America is a
great country, but it needs to change. Today it is Muslims who are
victimized," he continued, "tomorrow it will be communists, and after
that it will be everyone else."
The need to find solutions through international law, where bodies
such as the United Nations or the International Court of Justice
would play a prominent role, was a concern to many of the people on
the march. Numerous banners demanded "Peace through social justice"
or proclaimed that "War is not the answer." Person after person
expressed the fear that unilateral military actions by the United
States would only increase the threat of terrorism, and cause the
death and suffering of many innocent people in the US and
Afghanistan. "The Bush administration has made a horrendous mistake,"
said Charlene Mitchell, co-chair of the Committees of Correspondence
for Democracy and Socialism. "This action gives us a false sense of
security. Think of the eventual death toll. This will only heighten
terrorism. We have to negotiate. We have to use international law."
Local peace and social justice groups see today's demonstration as
the beginning of a new movement for change. While many people
expressed anger at both the attack on the World Trade Center and the
response of US policy makers, and some expressed fear about what
might happen in the future, others were confident that such a
movement could affect lasting change.
As Esperanza Martell, a long-time Puerto Rican activist in New York,
made her way through the crowd and gave out flowers, she paused for a
moment to say, "On the anniversary of the death of Che Guevara we
stand for peace with justice in our time. Siempre hasta la victoria!"
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