President Obama has arrived in Arizona to speak about his plan regarding the foreclosure cramming plan (crisis) which has slammed Arizona.It has been unofficially stated Az is #3 in foreclosures nationally so why not meet the people of Insane McCain's state to get the public involved in a conversation of what is next ad how do we recover?????
I watched President Obama walk off Air Force One just before 5pm on all local news outlets.I ran out to the hotel to make sure the motorcade got a glimpse of my banner that says" Bring Our Troops Home Now" Get US Out of Iraq!!Somehow i just got into the city of Paradise Valley ahead of the street closures.The police were right behind me closing the street from the highway about 20th street. Parked the car quick fast in a hurry....ran up to the corner just east of Tatum ..i was a moment to late the motorcade had entered another entrance.Darn it i just missed Obama on the hometown turf!!!!!!!!!!!oh well i went to the main entrance ad stood with my banner for 2 hours ....the secret service came over to me 2x after the hotel staff told me permission has been granted to be on the sidewalk.I just stayed there ........no sign of the prez!
till tomorrow...........
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Citizen Diplomacy trip to Gaza
A three-person delegation from the peace group CODEPINK just returned from Gaza, entering through the Egyptian border at Rafah. We were able, in a short period of time, to see the terrible devastation and meet with human rights, medical, and women’s organizations. We found the people of Gaza very anxious to have foreign delegations come to learn about their plight and push for an end to the blockade. That is why we are organizing a delegation to return to Gaza in time for International Women’s Day, March 8. The March delegation will be hosted by the Women’s Division of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
There is always the possibility that the Egyptian government won’t let us cross the border. In that case, we plan to set up an encampment near the border to call attention to the need to open the borders and end the siege of Gaza. See more details below. For more information or to sign up, contact gaza.codepink@gmail.com or call Nancy Mancias at 415-342-6409. We hope you will join us! Sincerely, Medea Benjamin Humanitarian Delegation to Gaza for International Women's Day: Pay Tribute to the Women of GazaMarch 5, 2009 - March 12, 2009 Itinerary: Meet up in Cairo, Egypt, on March 5 Travel to Gaza on March 6 Meetings and programs in Gaza on March 7-10 Return to Cairo on March 11 International delegates return home on March 12 Cost: $600 from Cairo, includes transportation, lodging, translation, program, some meals, and contributions to local groups. Scholarships are available. Program: Meetings with UN and government officials, local women (including victims of Israeli violence), humanitarian and development agencies, journalists, health workers, and political analysts. Visit areas devastated by Israeli attacks.
Purpose of the trip: Provide support to women and women's organizations in Gaza; exert pressure on United States, Egyptian, and Israeli governments to lift the blockade and promote peace and human rights in the region. Organizers: The trip is organized by CODEPINK: Women for Peace and will be led by CODEPINK cofounders Medea Benjamin and Jodie Evans. Sponsoring groups include National Congress of Black Women, Global Exchange, Voices for Creative Nonviolence, American Muslim Voice, and Women's Intercultural Network.
Sign up
There is always the possibility that the Egyptian government won’t let us cross the border. In that case, we plan to set up an encampment near the border to call attention to the need to open the borders and end the siege of Gaza. See more details below. For more information or to sign up, contact gaza.codepink@gmail.com or call Nancy Mancias at 415-342-6409. We hope you will join us! Sincerely, Medea Benjamin Humanitarian Delegation to Gaza for International Women's Day: Pay Tribute to the Women of GazaMarch 5, 2009 - March 12, 2009 Itinerary: Meet up in Cairo, Egypt, on March 5 Travel to Gaza on March 6 Meetings and programs in Gaza on March 7-10 Return to Cairo on March 11 International delegates return home on March 12 Cost: $600 from Cairo, includes transportation, lodging, translation, program, some meals, and contributions to local groups. Scholarships are available. Program: Meetings with UN and government officials, local women (including victims of Israeli violence), humanitarian and development agencies, journalists, health workers, and political analysts. Visit areas devastated by Israeli attacks.
Purpose of the trip: Provide support to women and women's organizations in Gaza; exert pressure on United States, Egyptian, and Israeli governments to lift the blockade and promote peace and human rights in the region. Organizers: The trip is organized by CODEPINK: Women for Peace and will be led by CODEPINK cofounders Medea Benjamin and Jodie Evans. Sponsoring groups include National Congress of Black Women, Global Exchange, Voices for Creative Nonviolence, American Muslim Voice, and Women's Intercultural Network.
Sign up
Friday, September 26, 2008
Gael & Diane Wilson
Diane Wilson Co Founder CODEPINK WOMEN FOR PEACE author shrimp fisher woman activist was in DC for a symbolic non violent direct action with other Vets Elliot Adams Doug Kim Ellen Barfield Tarak at the National Archives. The Vets took over & occupied theArchives balcony for over 24 hours with the message of IMPEACHMENT =upholdig the Consitution!We hada team delivering impeachment articles to the members of Congress simultaneously.
just thought i would share---LIVE FROM DC LIZ
Friday, July 4, 2008
IMPEACHMENT IS PARIOTIC
In the spirit of July 4th CODEPINK National took a road trip to Monticello Virginia to the home of Thomas Jefferson to peaceably assemble in the theme of IMPEACHMENT being the highest form of Patriotism!CCODEPINK David Swanson and several local activists disrupted when BUSH was speaking.We Shouted Impeachment War Criminal Support our troops with the TRUTH!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Conference of Mayors 76th Annual in Miami
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A group of us went to the US Mayors Conference in Miami this weekend to introduce a resolution calling for diplomacy with Iran. We had been successful in getting Mayor Kiss from Burlington, VT, who is on the International Committee of the conference, to introduce the resolution and through a great grassroots campaign, we got 32 cosponsors from all over the country!
The resolution was approved by the International Committee but unfortunately, when it got to the floor for a vote, several mayors voiced support but others voiced opposition. The group was worried about a divisive dispute like the one that occurred last year around a resolution on Iraq (which squeaked through by one vote!) and voted to table the resolution until next year.
While we are disappointed, we did use the time in Miami to get many new mayors on board, and we have since talked to Mayor Kiss, who agrees with us that we should continue the campaign. Our new goal is to get 100 mayors on board, and then take a group of mayors to Washington DC in September to present the resolution to Congress and the White House. We are talking to Cities for Peace about working with us to raise funds for the Washington DC part of the campaign.
We have an updated version of the resolution below that we should put on the website (we’ve removed references to the US Conference of Mayors), and a new, impressive list of the cosponsors (see below). We should continue to encourage our members and other organizations to join us in getting 100 mayors to sign on.
Thanks for all the help. We welcome all suggestions about how to make this campaign as effective as possible.
Medea
P.S. You might have heard that Liz Hourican and I got arrested at the conference. Sadly, that is true. We were pre-registered as press for Global Exchange, got our credentials and were participating in the conference when hotel security groups and police surrounded us and told us to leave. It seems they remembered us from the last time we were in Miami speaking out against terrorist Posada Carrilles and were worried that we might embarrass the conference host—Miami’s Mayor Manny Diaz. When we objected to leaving, they arrested us. I was charged with trespassing; Liz was charged with trespassing, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. After 8 hours in a cramped, smelly, dirty jail cell with 25 prostitutes, our friends posted $3,500 bail for us and we were released. We have to return to Miami to appear in court next month.
We also had a police motorcycle escort—sometime 4 strong!--following our pick-up truck around Miami. The truck has a “controversial sign” on it saying “Money for Cities, Not War.” Every few minutes we would take out our bullhorn and shout to them, “We are not terrorists. Stop following us.” Working for peace is indeed a hazardous occupation these days!
National Mayors’ Resolution for Diplomacy with Iran
1. WHEREAS, the President and members of his Administration have alleged that Iran poses an imminent threat to the United States, U.S. troops in the Middle East and U.S. allies; and
2. WHEREAS, these allegations are similar to the lead-up to the Iraq War and U.S. occupation, with the selective use of information and unsubstantiated accusations about Iran's nuclear program and its supply of weapons to Iraqi forces as centerpieces of a case to the American people for aggression against Iran; and
3. WHEREAS, Iran has not threatened to attack the United States, and no compelling evidence has been presented to document that Iran poses a real and imminent threat to the security and safety of the United States that would justify an unprovoked unilateral pre-emptive military attack; and
4. WHEREAS, we support the people of Iran who are struggling for freedom and democracy, and nothing herein should be misconstrued as support for the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, but it should be understood that a unilateral, pre-emptive U.S. military attack on Iran could well prove counterproductive to the cause of promoting freedom and democracy there; and
5. WHEREAS, a 2007 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), representing the consensus view all 16 U.S. intelligence agencies, concluded that Iran froze its nuclear weapons program in 2003, and an earlier NIE concluded that Iran’s involvement in Iraq “is not likely to be a major driver of violence” there; and
6. WHEREAS, an attack on Iran is likely to cause untold thousands of American and Iranian casualties, lead to major economic dislocations, and threaten even greater destabilization in the Middle East; and
7. WHEREAS, a pre-emptive U.S. military attack on Iran would violate international law and our commitments under the U.N. Charter and further isolate the U.S. from the rest of the world; and
8. WHEREAS, an attack on Iran is likely to inflame hatred for the U.S. in the Middle East and elsewhere, inspire terrorism, and lessen the security of Americans; and
9. WHEREAS, the Iraq war and occupation has already cost the lives of over 4,000 American soldiers, the maiming and wounding of over 38,000 American soldiers, the death and maiming of over one million Iraqi civilians; and
10. WHEREAS, the Iraq War and occupation has cost U.S. taxpayers more than $500 billion, depriving our cities of much-need funds for services and infrastructure; and
11. WHEREAS, except at our peril, we cannot ignore the history of U.S. government misinformation used to inspire U.S. aggression in Vietnam and again in Iraq, as embodied in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and more recently in the what we know now as false claims of weapons of mass destruction; and
12. WHEREAS, any conflict with Iran is likely to incur far greater costs and divert more precious national resources away from critical human needs,
13. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the undersigned mayors, hereby urge the Bush Administration to pursue diplomatic engagement with Iran on nuclear issues and ending the violence in Iraq; and
14. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we, the undersigned mayors, urge Congress to prohibit the use of funds to carry out any military action against Iran without explicit Congressional authorization; and
15. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that suitable copies of the resolution be forwarded to President George W. Bush and all members of Congress.
Sponsors:
The Honorable Bob Kiss
Mayor of Burlington, VT
The Honorable Ron Dellums
Oakland, CA
The Honorable Bill Baarsma
Mayor of Tacoma, WA
The Honorable Mary Clare Higgins
Mayor of Northhampton
The Honorable Joy Cooper
Mayor of Hallandale Beach, FL
The Honorable Marty Blum
Mayor of Santa Barbara, CA
The Honorable Dan Coody
Mayor of Fayetteville, AR
The Honorable Kevin Foy
Mayor of Chapel Hill, NC
The Honorable Gayle McLaughlin
Mayor of Richmond, CA
The Honorable Kitty Piercy
Mayor of Eugene, OR
The Honorable Elaine Walker
Mayor of Bowling Green
The Honorable Jeff Prang
Mayor of West Hollywood, CA
The Honorable Rhine McLin
Mayor of Dayton, OH
The Honorable Jennifer Hosterman
Mayor of Pleasanton, CA
The Honorable Laurel Lunt Prussing
Mayor of Urbana, IL
The Honorable Anthony B Santos
Mayor of San Leandro, CA
The Honorable J. Christian Bollwage
Mayor of Elizabeth, NJ
The Honorable Scott J. Brook
Mayor of Coral Springs, FL
The Honorable Bruce R. Williams
Mayor of Takoma Park, MD
The Honorable William D. ‘Bill’ Euille
Mayor of Alexandria, VA
The Honorable R.T. Rybak
Mayor of Minneapolis, MN
The Honorable Dave Norris
Mayor of Charlottesville, VA
The Honorable James M. Baker
Mayor of Wilmington, DE
The Honorable Carolyn K. Peterson
Mayor of Ithaca, NY
The Honorable Craig Covey
Mayor of Ferndale, MI
The Honorable E. Denise Simmons
Mayor of Cambridge, MA
The Honorable N. Dale Thompson
Mayor of Condon, OR
The Honorable Sue Greenwald
Mayor of Davis, CA
The Honorable Tom Potter
Mayor of Portland, OR
The Honorable David Coss
Mayor of Santa Fe, NM
The Honorable Lois Frankel
Mayor of West Palm Beach, FL
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