[PAA-Discuss] Close the School of the Americas in 2009
Juli3 at aol.com
Juli3 at aol.com
Fri Oct 16 15:23:52 EDT 2009
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=i/wqqXfOI6vPMCpRL3wyRqAHWPVi7Jq3)
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ysD339t/55Cs7gcxvjJTlKAHWPVi7Jq3)
_Participate in WFP hosted events_ (mip://048fe210/default.html#Events)
(mip://048fe210/default.html#Events)
____________________________________
_Join corporate crimes protests
_ (mip://048fe210/default.html#Protests)
____________________________________
Help close the School of the Americas for good!
Join Witness for Peace at the
2009 Vigil to Close the School of the Americas
November 20-22, 2009
Columbus, GA
_See a schedule of WFP hosted events_ (mip://048fe210/default.html#Events)
_Gather with tens of thousands of other activists for the annual vigil to
close the notorious School of the Americas (SOA). Each year we grow closer
to seeing the school closed for good. Together we can close the SOA! (See
background below_ (mip://048fe210/default.html#Background) .)
On the Way to Georgia...
PROTEST the corporate crimes of Chiquita, Drummond & Coke against the
people of Colombia!
November 18 in Cincinatti, OH
November 19 in Birmingham, AL
November 20 in Atlanta, GA
Wednesday, November 18 at 3:30pm
Chiquita Brands International, _250 East 5th St., Cincinnati, Ohio_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=7X9NZRhksB7R7rmI0g7yg6AHWPV
i7Jq3)
Chiquita is the only U.S. Corporation to plead guilty to violations of the
U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act. In 2007 they agreed to pay a $25 million dollar
fine for their support of the Colombian paramilitaries, but none of the
officers have been charged or held accountable. Demand that Chiquita pay
compensation to victims' families and hold the corporate officers criminally
liable.
Thursday, November 19 at 3:30pm
Drummond Company, Inc., Birmingham, Alabama (Site TBA)
Demand compensation and accountability from the Drummond Company, accused
of serious human rights abuses against Colombian workers, including the
deaths of three union leaders.
Friday, November 20 at 11:00am
Coca-Cola, _121 Baker St. NW, Atlanta, Georgia _
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nxb2fZwUNHLuwPi6PF6SXqAHWPVi7Jq3)
Pending U.S. lawsuits against Coca-Cola and its bottler, Coca-Cola Femsa,
charge that Coca-Cola's bottlers in Colombia "contracted with or otherwise
directed paramilitary security forces that utilized extreme violence and
murdered, tortured, unlawfully detained or otherwise silenced trade union
leaders." Demand justice for these union leaders.
_To RSVP_ (mailto:ken at witnessforpeace.org) , get more information, or
learn about housing options, _contact Ken Crowley_
(mailto:ken at witnessforpeace.org) at 773.564.9535 or 202.423.3402.
Witness for Peace Events at the SOA Vigil:
Friday, November 20 at 3:00pm
10th Annual Colombia Teach-In, _Howard Johnson Presidential Room,
Columbus, Georgia_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=xjfbfYCAZXdYAeewSnlhFaAHWPVi7Jq3)
This is a critical time for U.S. Colombia policy. The Obama administration
has reneged on its promise to reject the destructive policies of the
proposed U.S./Colombia "Free Trade Agreement". We must stop the FTA NOW! This
year's teach-in will explore the political and economic reality in
Colombia and the powerful reasons to reject the Colombia FTA:
* Impunity for human rights violators
* U.S. corporate complicity
* Paramilitary murders of trade union leaders.
Speakers:
Martha Lucia Giraldo, from Cauca, Colombia. Martha is the daughter of
José Orlando Giraldo, a victim of an extrajudicial killing by the National
Army. Martha is a member of the Victims of State Crimes Movement working to
demand their rights to truth, justice and reparation.
Gerardo Cajamarca Alarcón, a native of Sasaima, a village in the coffee
producing area of Colombia. Gerardo was forced to flee Colombia in 2004
after receiving death threats because of his work as a human rights advocate
and labor organizer, including work with a Coca-Cola labor union decimated
by paramilitaries.
Jairo Dionisio Fuentes Epiayu, a Wayuu indigenous leader from northern
Colombia. His village, Tamaquito, has been systematically cut off and
debilitated by the giant multinational Cerrejón coal mine, which supplies coal to
power plants up and down the east coast of the United States.
Joined by:
Aviva Chomsky, Professor of History and Coordinator of Latin American
Studies at Salem State College in Massachusetts, and author of "They Take Our
Jobs! And 20 Other Myths about Immigration"
Ray Rogers, founder and director of New York City based Corporate Campaign
Inc. which has championed labor, human rights and environmental causes
for three decades.
Saturday, November 21 at 7:00pm
Roots of Migration Workshop, _Convention Center, Columbus, Georgia_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=FXg+t7ihmgAiMqJWVa0HNKAHWPV
i7Jq3)
One of the key issues facing the current administration is immigration
reform. Anti-immigrant legislation, cruel raids and deportations are
threatening our immigrant sisters and brothers in communities throughout the
country. Considering the danger of the trip across the border, Mexicans' and
Central Americans' decisions to immigrate to the United States are often
made out of economic desperation. When families cannot afford to feed their
children or provide them with basic necessities they take drastic measures.
Mexicans and Central Americans will continue to risk their lives to
emigrate partially due to the results of free trade agreements such as NAFTA
(North American Free Trade Agreement) and CAFTA (Central American Free Trade
Agreement). These failed agreements have devastated the countryside,
displacing millions and increasing unemployment and poverty. Learn how the
movement for just U.S. foreign policy and the immigrant rights movement can work
together to address the root causes of immigration.
Presented by Ben Beachy, WFP Mid-Atlantic Regional Organizer and former
member of the WFP International Team in Nicaragua
Sunday, November 22 at 9:00am
Memorial Service and Solemn Procession, Ft. Benning, Columbus, Georgia
Join us at the Procession. Members of the WFP community will walk
together behind the WFP banner during the memorial service and symbolic funeral
procession.
Background
The School of the Americas (SOA), in 2001 renamed the "Western Hemisphere
Institute for Security Cooperation", is a combat training school for Latin
American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia. Initially
established in Panama in 1946, it was kicked out of that country in 1984 under the
terms of the Panama Canal Treaty. Former Panamanian President, Jorge
Illueca, stated that the School of the Americas was the "biggest base for
destabilization in Latin America ." The SOA, frequently dubbed the " School of
Assassins ," has left a trail of blood and suffering in every country where
its graduates have returned.
Over its 60+ years, the SOA has trained over 60,000 Latin American
soldiers in counterinsurgency techniques, sniper training, commando and
psychological warfare, military intelligence and interrogation tactics. These
graduates have consistently used their skills to wage a war against their own
people. Among those targeted by SOA graduates are educators, union
organizers, religious workers, student leaders, and others who work for the rights of
the poor. Hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans have been tortured,
raped, assassinated, "disappeared," massacred, and forced to flee by those
trained at the School of the Americas.
For close to twenty years, _School of the Americas Watch_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=YCQ62W5R2yhcMkPSzLyBsaAHWPVi7Jq3) has
been organizing an annual mobilization to close the school. The vigil is
held in November to commemorate the 1989 massacre of six jesuit priests,
their co-worker and her daughter by soldiers trained at the U.S. Army School
of the Americas.
____________________________________
Witness for Peace
3628 12th Street NE. 1st Fl.,
Washington, DC 20017
202.547.6112 - 202.536.4708
_witness at witnessforpeace.org_ (mailto:witness at witnessforpeace.org)
If this was forwarded to you, visit
_http://www.witnessforpeace.org/subscribe_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=k5tdhNVh/4nmUOCJYLvuN6AHWPVi7Jq3) to subscribe.
Visit _http://www.witnessforpeace.org/unsubscribe_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=4tgpzd8xnbHlDLBFt0FiaaAHWPVi7Jq3) to
unsubscribe. To update your preferences or contact information, go to:
_http://www.witnessforpeace.org/profile_
(http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=8K2CfCLKANzsIutmoAWhl6AHWPVi7Jq3)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://paa-tx.org/pipermail/discuss_paa-tx.org/attachments/20091016/c7f57fd4/attachment.htm>
More information about the Discuss
mailing list