Sunday
December 16
1:00 pm
At the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
Rockefeller Plaza (off 49th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues)
Stop The War * Defend Civil Liberties * Stop Racist Violence
During this holiday season, we march for Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward All.
New York Coalition for Peace and Justice - 212-228-0450 - http://www.nycpj.org
Our Grief Is Not A Cry For War
During this first holiday season since the horrible events of September 11, a war is raging in Afghanistan. Throughout this country people are celebrating the spirit of the season, while here in New York we enter these holidays still mourning the loss of thousands of lives. At the same time, one of the poorest nations on earth, Afghanistan has been all but destroyed by decades of warfare and weeks of constant bombing and intense fighting. As winter begins millions of Afghan people face starvation and an ongoing war.
Instead of seeking diplomatic measures to decrease terror in the world, the United States government has mobilized the largest, most powerful military force in history and unleashed it on the people of Afghanistan. In the planning for a new government, the women of Afghanistan are still kept out of the process. And in Washington there is talk of military actions= against other countries around the world. We must raise our voices to stop this ever-expanding war now!
Defend Civil Liberties
Since 9-11, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Immigration and Naturalization Service has rounded up thousands of Arab Americans and Muslims. They have been detained without trials, hearings or legal advice as a result of racial profiling, not because there is any evidence of wrong-doing.
On November 13, in an unconstitutional action described by the New York Times as a "travesty of justice," President George W. Bush issued an executive order permitting the trial by military tribunal of non-U.S. citizens suspected of terrorism. Military tribunals are held in secret, without juries, and with none of the protections (limited as they might be) that the Constitution gives to all residents of this country. If a president can annul the rights of some with the stroke of a pen, what is to stop him from suspending the rights of all of us?
Stop Racial, Ethnic And Religious Bigotry And Violence
Paralleling the official actions of many law enforcement and other government agencies, some people have become suspicious of their own neighbors - cab drivers, students, gas station attendants, doctors, storekeepers, journalists - merely on the basis of their nationality or religion. Reports have come in from around the country of assaults against people believed to be Arab or Muslim, in some instances going as far as murder.
In a city of people who have come from around the world, we cannot allow anti-immigrant attitudes and actions to go unchecked. We must uphold our cherished values of diversity and respect for all. We must say no to racist attacks.
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As Washington prepares for new military actions in other nations, as the threat to our civil liberties deepens every day, and as racial profiling= and racist assaults go unchallenged we must make our voices heard. Please help us build for December 16. Contact us to find out how you can help: 212-228-0450
New York Coalition for Peace and Justice
[posted 12/4/01]
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