Protesting Obama's Troop Surge

  I get on the bullhorn and start saying, "What you are witnessing is a re-enactment of the occupation of Afghanistan . The civilians are actors and the soldiers are with Iraq Vets Against the war. This is what is going on everyday in Iraq and Afghanistan . Killing children, rounding up people to be tortured. And on Tuesday Dec 1. Barack Obama is escalating this war with 35,000 troops. We will be out in the streets to say no, not in our name and you should join us too. You thought this war was wrong under Bush, now this is Obama's war and it is still wrong." One woman says, "You shouldn't cuss in front of children." And one of the vets replies, " Why are you more concerned about your child's ears than the fact that your government is killing children in Afghanistan ?" She doesn't say anything. People are taking fliers from us. We get out at least 500. People comment about how if this is what the U.S. Is doing in Afghanistan that is really bad. One women asked, " Is the U.S really doing this? Are they really bombing wedding parties?' We talk to people about how the richest country in the world is destroying this poorest. People nod as they hold their shopping bags.

It seems like for many people, they genuinely did not know that this is what an occupation looks like. An older black guy says that his brother just came back from Iraq and he is really messed up. He is very angry that Obama is sending a 35,000 troop surge into Afghanistan . People run up to us from across the street to grab fliers. We get a couple of right wingers who say that the " U.S. is bringing  freedom and democracy to the people in Afghanistan and do you want another 9/11?" We point to the street theater and say, "Oh is this freedom?" We have answers to all of their points with the content of the flier that reads " The women and the people of Afghanistan have the right to self determination. They should not be forced into choosing to live with a suffocation U.S. Occupation or an Islamic theocracy. This is what U.S. Military presence and involvement does- it forces people there to make this horrible choice." They quiet down after a minute. Security comes out and threatens to call the police.

 We continue with our action and agitate to the crowd that people need to start resisting this war, that includes stepping out of business as usual and that we will not be intimidated. The media covers the whole thing. They interview me and an Iraq vet. What we did today is exactly what resistance looks like. It is not appealing to the powers that be -the powers that be are the ones who are intent on going forward with this war despite public opinion being against it. Resistance is going up against the status quo, getting the message out to people and bringing them into a movement to stop wars for empire. We disrupted business as usual. Almost everybody who saw the action felt that they had to weigh in on it because it could not be ignored.

Later in the evening, the story pops up on the media blogs. Almost instantly 19 right wing reactionaries comment, calling for us to be arrested and killed. The next day, comments rise up to 200 mixed in with anti war comments supporting our action. More people should thumbs down the right wing comments and support our action on these blogs. I don't know what they are more angry about- the fact that we are protesting against the surge into Afghanistan or the fact that there are people who were in the U.S. Military and are denouncing the war in Afghanistan & Iraq. Hours later, Coffee Strong - a GI coffeehouse near Fort Lewis run by IVAW has their windows broken. Seth Manzel from IVAW says on his facebook, " To the nationalist fuck who broke out COFFEE STRONG'S window: you and your buddies will have to try harder than that to shut us down."

After Obama makes his 35,000 troop surge announcement, will there be voices contending to the public? Getting the truth out about these occupations and the need for people of conscience in this country to take a bold visible stand? Or will it be set by right wing facists, who find tolerance towards Muslims as "treason" and revolted at the very existence of a Black president. As they advocate death and destruction against anti-war activists, they preach in the same breath that they are spreading freedom and democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan . There is no difference between these forces and the fundamentalist drug lords in Afghanistan the U.S. is aligning itself with, that set fire to women and kill teachers who teach girls. It is time for all of to take history into our own hands." On December 1^st I will be out with others on the streets of Seattle to take out the message " Stop The Escalation, Out of Afghanistan Now! The World Can't Wait. Stop The Crimes of Your Government." These actions will happening all over the country. Step out, join in one of the demonstrations locally, start your own and find your own way of resisting on Tuesday. Go to worldcantwait.org to get plugged in.

See news coverage of the event

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/77843112.html#idc-container

http://www.king5.com/video/featured-videos/Group-protests-sending-more-toops-to-Afghanistan-77890897.html