source: portside New generation plans dissent > Activists 2.0 > > By Colleen O'Connor > > The Denver Post - June 22, 2008 > > http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_9654625 > > A nude-in with bare bodies arranged to spell "PEACE," > traffic- stopping bike blockades, music with a message. > Civil disobedience, direct confrontation, radical > cheerleading. > > That funky fusion of protest, performance and pompoms. > > The new generation of activists, and the daisy-in-the- > rifle protesters who birthed them, is busy with > creative ferment, organizing public dissent for the > Democratic National Convention here in August. They are > motivated by the desire to create social change with > people power, not political power, frustrated by a > mounting list of problems, from the housing crisis to > soaring prices for gas and food. > > "There will be a lot of people at this convention who > are progressive and who are angry at the Democrats," > Post Poll - Convention Protest > > Are you thinking of joining protests during the > Democratic National Convention in Denver? (Read related > story.) No Yes Not sure says Virginia Trabulsi, who has > worked for years with the anti-war group United for > Peace and Justice. > > "They're saying, 'Why have we not impeached Bush? Why > is Homeland Security out of control?' " > > Tens of thousands of activists are expected, homegrown > and imported. Some plan to drive FEMA trailers up from > Mississippi for a media-savvy statement about > continuing Hurricane Katrina struggles. Others are > coming from Seattle, like the Backbone Campaign, which > will haul 70-foot-tall political puppets called The > Chain Gang: prison-suited images of Bush, Dick Cheney > and Donald Rumsfeld. > > Socialists have formed an alliance with military > veterans who are against the Iraq war. > > Guerilla gardening > > Anarchists will give workshops on guerilla gardening, > or political gardening, a style of nonviolent action > that takes on issues like land ownership by occupying > abandoned lots - sometimes in the dead of night - and > transforming them into urban gardens. > > And then there are the pacifists, groups like the > historic American Friends Service Committee founded by > Quakers in 1917, which plans to host an exhibition > called "The Costs of War," detailing how the $720 > million spent each day on the war could be spent on > education and housing. > > These different factions speak of just one common goal: > stopping the Iraq war immediately. > > Beyond that, beliefs differ. So do strategies. > > Some protesters espouse the right to active self- > defense if they are treated too harshly. On the other > side are those who say that violence, verbal or > physical, is never an acceptable tool on the path > toward peace. > > In America, this debate is as old as the war between > the North and the South. > > "It goes back to the abolitionist movement during the > Civil War," says Ira Chernus, professor of religious > studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder. > > "Some were committed to strict nonviolence, and some > felt that because the system of slavery, and the > military force used to maintain it, was so violent that > the only way to break the system of slavery was by > using violence." > > As Chernus points out in his recent book, "American > Nonviolence: The History of an Idea," nonviolence is an > integral thread in the fabric of U.S. history. > > Significant role > > "From the 1820s to the 1950s, scarcely a decade went by > that a nonviolent movement did not play some > significant role in the practical outcome of political, > social and economic events," he says. > > "Since the 1960s, scarcely a day has gone by that a > nonviolent movement did not play a significant role." > > From the Civil War to the civil-rights movement, from > the labor movement to the environmental movement - and > now, in Denver, "If I called my granddad an > environmentalist," says Adam Jung, "he'd smack me, but > those are his values." Tent State workshops will train > activists in nonviolent direct action. (Joe Amon, The > Denver Post) activists young and old, the progressives > and the radicals, will enact the next chapter of the > nonviolent movement in America, addressing everything > from the Iraq war to global warming. > > CodePink, a national anti-war organization, plans a > Restore Democracy Parade, an extravaganza of dissent: > floats, political theater, musicians, stilt performers, > radical cheerleaders, puppets, drummers and bands. > > The local spokeswoman for CodePink is Zoe Williams, a > 22-year-old platinum blond with spiky hair, rectangular > glasses and a penchant for black-and-white polka-dot > canvas shoes. > > She's part of the new face of activism, a youth-driven > alliance that includes Students for Peace and Justice, > Students for a Democratic Society, and Tent State "We > were putting in all this work" for the convention, Jojo > Pease says, and thought, "What's going to happen > afterward?" The answer: a chapter of Students for a > Democratic Society, reborn two years ago. (Joe Amon, > The Denver Post ) University. Her goal is to help > restore the image of activists everywhere. > > "That's something our progressive movement is now > seriously considering," she says. "How can we make > ourselves less frightening? How can we make ourselves > look open? > > "One of the big things about the colorful, creative > protests is to show that we are a very interesting, > artistic, positive group of people. We aren't this > scary image that protesters often get painted as." > > She works closely with guys like Adam Jung, a farm boy > from Missouri who now studies at the University of > Denver and spends his free time organizing Tent State > University, mobilizing students to confront the > Democrats and end the war. > > "I'm definitely not right-wing or conservative, but I > do identify with rural values," Jung says. "If I called > my granddad an environmentalist, he'd smack me, but > those are his values." > > Grassroots movement > > The base camp he envisions for Tent State University > will include thousands of tents staked in City Park, > with a music festival featuring political hip-hoppers > The Coup and Wayne Kramer, who played with his old > group the Motor City 5 during the 1968 Democratic > National Convention in Chicago. Tent State workshops > will train activists in nonviolent direct action,and > focus on building a grassroots movement. > > And from this idea sprang the newly minted Denver > chapter of the Students for a Democratic Society. > > "We were talking a lot about Tent State, which is not > actually an organization but more a technique or > strategy," says 25-year-old Jojo Pease. "I was feeling > a little disappointed. We were putting in all this > work, but I thought, 'What's going to happen > afterward?' " > > To capture the momentum created at the DNC, they > decided to start a Denver chapter of Students for a > Democratic Society. > > Back in the 1960s, the SDS was the most influential > group of radical student activists in the country. It > died out in 1969 but was re-created two years ago and > is now one of the fast-growing groups of young > activists, with more than 300 chapters on college and > high school campuses. The goal is to create a society > free from poverty, war, racism and sexism. > > "SDS is starting to become cool again," says Jung. > > Whether rooted in the '60s or the '00s, activists are > driven by the same fuel. > > "We are passionate people who really spend way too much > time thinking about all the awful stuff in the world > that's so urgent," says Sarah Gill, program director > for the Denver office of the American Friends Service > Committee. "We just want to do the right thing, and it > matters if we do it the right way, because people's > lives depend on it." > > Six months ago, with his eye on the convention, > longtime activist Ron Forthofer created a group called > The People Call for Change. > > Their action plan for the convention calls not for a > protest, nor a demonstration, but a series of events to > be held in churches and community centers - educational > evenings that will dangle a hopeful vision of how a > grassroots movement might lead the country in a new > direction. Topics include health care, consumerism, the > environment and civil liberties. > > "The thing that is driving all of us is that we want to > reclaim our country, to restore it and make it be a > government and a country by and for the people," he > says. > > "There's a lot of alienation out there today, a feeling > that both parties have abandoned their responsibilities > to the people." > > Colleen O'Connor: 303-954-1083 or [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > ===== > > Protest groups > > CodePink > > Founded: 2002 > > Mission: CodePink is a women-initiated grassroots peace > and social-justice movement working to end the war in > Iraq, prevent new military actions and redirect > resources into health care, education and other "life- > affirming" activities. > > United for Peace and Justice > > Founded: 2002 > > Mission: A coalition of more than 1,400 local and > national groups that have joined together to protest > the Iraq war and support the fight for global economic > justice. > > Tent State University > > Founded: 2003 > > Mission: A network of student-led projects intended to > create a more- effective democracy, with issues that > range from war opposition to high tuition costs. > > People Call for Change > > Founded: 2008 > > Mission: This coalition hopes to build a grassroots > movement for social change, from monitoring corporate > power to promoting health care and civil liberties. > Spiritual values underlie their positions on issues, > which arise from secular and religious traditions. > > Students for Peace and Justice > > Founded: 2007 > > Mission: A local vehicle for student action to end the > war and create progressive social change. > > American Friends Service Committee > > Founded: 1917 > > Mission: The organization, which espouses nonviolence, > won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1947. Today, the group > takes a strong anti-war position and works on a variety > of issues, such as economic justice and immigrants' > rights. > > Students for Democratic Society > > Founded: 2006 > > Mission: Inspired by the original organization by the > same name that dominated the 1960s protest movement, > this new version wants to revitalize student activism > in the United States, work to stop all wars and create > a participatory democracy. > > The Backbone Campaign > > Founded: 2003 > > Mission: A grassroots campaign to encourage citizens > and elected officials to stand up for progressive > values, focusing on issues of democracy, economic > justice, ecology and international relations. > >
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