Black NJ Organizes Against the War--2008 edition!

Yesterday, the People's Peace and Justice Coalition held its 2008 conference in Newark, NJ. Fire on the Mountain has been covering the Coalition since before the inaugural conference was held last year with over 500 participants. Since then, the Coalition held an even larger indoor rally and the historic People's March for Peace, Equality, Jobs and Justice through downtown Newark on a scorching August day.

When the assembly was called to order by Larry Hamm of the People's Organization for Progress, we thought we might be looking at a real setback--there were fewer than one hundred people in the hall at Rutgers. As it turned out, folks kept coming and, unusually, the conference hit its peak in mid-afternoon with over 250 people present at one time, overwhelmingly from the African-American, Latina/o and other minority communities of Northern NJ.

Among them was a sizable contingent from the street organization The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation, who have seen a good number of their Northern NJ members killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. They attended workshops with titles like "Challenging Military recruitment Among the Poor, Working Class, People of Color & Immigrants," "Stop the Violence: Ending the War in Our Streets," "Building the Peace Justice Movement Among Young People," and "The Influence of the Prison Industrial Complex & the War."

Still, while the event went very well, we need to reflect on why participation in the Coalition has not continued to grow. POP Chairman Larry Hamm and I had to cut out at the start of the morning workshops and make a run to the Ironbound section of Newark for a community and hospital workers rally against the closing of St. James Medical Center. The drive over gave us a chance to consider why the attendance was off back at Rutgers. Brother Hamm felt that the short participation might be his fault, given that he hadn't spent a lot of time making his usual personal phone calls to build attendance among the clergy and elected officials. I suggested a significant growth in cynicism since the Democratic majority in Congress had essentially ignored why their Republican rivals had been tossed out in '06 ("End this criminal war, dummies!").

In Ironbound, we came face to face with another reason: about 750 people, mostly neighborhood residents, protesting the closing of their hospital! This was an interesting contrast to the weak community response to the closing of other hospitals throughout Newark and Essex County recently. This powerful protest reminded us was that the survival struggles of poor and working folk are so urgent that they take priority over issues like stopping the war, even though most of them recognize the direct connection with the trillions of dollars being wasted on the war and worsening living conditions here.

Back at the conference, a conversation with Margaret Stevens of Iraq Veterans Against the War (a sponsoring organization of the Peace & Justice Coalition) helped me see something else that has changed since last year. Margaret described how one early and dedicated member of the new NJ Chapter of IVAW had gotten so wrapped up in the presidential campaign of Congressman Dennis Kucinich, that he is not very active in the veterans anti-war movement. The lure of "quick fixes" is in some ways a mirror image of the view that the war against Iraq a matter of individual leadership errors. So too many concentrate on electing a President who promises (sort of) to end the war, or on impeachement, at the expense of the drive to bring the troops home has disarmed the bring the troops home movement.

The crowd was buoyed throughout its day's work by exciting cultural performances including the Martin Luther King, Jr. Association of Columbia High School Gospel Choir, the NJ Industrial Union Council's Solidarity Singers, and the return of Nell Sanders' incredible drumming.

To see addition photographs from the January 2008 People's Peace Conference, go to the People's Organization for Progress photo page http://homepage.mac.com/union_county_labor/Peoples_Org_for_Prog/PhotoAlbum160.html.

Read more!

Black NJ Prepares To March!

This blog has been tracking the enormously important development of the Peace & Justice Coalition, an alliance of over 100 community, religious, labor, social, educational and other organizations centered in the Black communities of Northern New Jersey, from its inception. FotM published the first call, summarized the founding convention and reported on its first event, a March 24 anti-war rally that drew over 600.

Now the Peace & Justice Coalition is taking it to the next level. Larry Hamm, a convener of the Coalition and long-time chair of the People's Organization for Progress, has issued a statement calling for a statewide march in Newark on August 25.

I know years of exposure to demonstration announcements, press statements and the like can induce a kind of scanning mode where more of the document bounces off the eye than penetrates it. I encourage you, dear reader, to take a little time to read this one. Study its concerns, consider its language.

It comes out of the African American community in New Jersey and it lays out issues that community and other communities of color are facing. It draws the links between the occupation of Iraq, the War at Home, and the crimes of this government in clear accessible terms. IF you don't think the anti-war movement needs a lot more of this, perhaps you've been in a different movement than the one I've spent the last five years dealing with.

Finally I hope that, having read it, if you are anywhere in the Northeast, you set aside August 25 to take part in the People's March for Peace, Equality, Jobs and Justice.

I'll see you there.

THE PEACE & JUSTICE COALITION CALL TO
THE PEOPLE'S MARCH FOR PEACE, EQUALITY, JOBS & JUSTICE
(Statement on behalf of the Peace & Justice Coalition by Lawrence Hamm)
May 11, 2007

Unjust War Abroad & Social Crisis At Home

The U.S. war on Iraq must be brought to an end and the U.S. government must begin to concentrate on solving the dire economic and social problems in the United States. This is an immoral and illegal war. President Bush and Vice President Cheney started this war of aggression based on false assertions including claims that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and was somehow responsible for the attack that led to the destruction of the World Trade Center. They launched an invasion against a country that did not attack nor pose any significant threat to the United States.

In Iraq, since the beginning of the unjust and unnecessary U.S. invasion and occupation, thousands of U.S. troops have been killed. Tens of thousands have been wounded. Many of them have had limbs amputated and large numbers now suffer from war related mental disorders. When these veterans come home many cannot get adequate medical care and other services. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have died since the invasion and we have practically destroyed their country. Contrary to the Bush administration’s claims about stopping terrorism, the world is a far more dangerous place since the war began, and now we are faced with the possibility that the U.S. could attack Iran or another country in the midst of the current war with Iraq. President Bush said that the U.S. had to send troops there to help promote democracy. However, it appears to many that we were more concerned about access to and control of Iraq's vast oil reserves. Thus far, the U.S. has spent more than 500 billion or one-half trillion dollars on this war with the probability that at least a trillion will be spent before it is over.

In the U.S., another type of war is going on, a war on our communities. The Bush administration, while increasing war spending, has decreased domestic spending for education, health care, housing, employment, veterans’ care and other social programs. While the U.S. wages war abroad our civil liberties, civil rights, human rights and voting rights are being violated and taken away at home.

As billions of our tax dollars are spent on a war that military experts say cannot be won, the ranks of the poor and working poor in our country continue to swell, millions are unemployed and millions more are without health insurance. Schools are under funded, hospitals are being closed, and thousands of homeless sleep on the streets of our nation. Racism, racial inequality and police brutality are on the rise. Working people are struggling paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet, many in the middle class are losing ground. College students and their families are falling deep into debt in order pay the astronomical cost of higher education. The gap between the rich and the rest of us is wider than it has ever been. These conditions facilitate the recruitment of young people by the U.S. military who are then sent to fight and die on the battlefields of Iraq. Immigrants are being harassed and deported without due process. The numbers of people imprisoned and detained are exploding. Environmental pollution and global warming threaten our very existence. State governments cannot adequately respond to natural disasters because many of their national guardsmen and equipment are being used in Iraq by the U.S. military. Our democracy is in crisis as people find their government unable to fulfill their desire for peace and justice.

The continued waste of billions of dollars on the war against Iraq in the face mounting social problems in our own country can only bring disastrous consequences. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said in his speech in opposition to the U.S. war in Vietnam, "A Time To Break Silence," a nation that spends more on its military than it does on its social development is a nation that "is approaching spiritual death."

A Time to March

It is time for a revolution of priorities. We must end this unjust war now and focus the energy and resources of our nation on solving our problems at home! Towards that end, this urgent call goes out to people across the nation to rise up and participate in The People's March for Peace, Equality, Jobs, and Justice, which will take place Saturday, August 25, 2007 in Newark, New Jersey. The purpose of the march is to demand an immediate end to the U.S. war on Iraq, redirection of funding for the war towards domestic needs, and the realization of racial equality, social and economic justice in the United States.

The goals of The People's March are to demonstrate the profound grassroots opposition to the U.S. war on Iraq, bring pressure to bear upon the government to end the war now, educate people about the war and its impact upon our communities in the U.S. and organize and mobilize people around a peace and justice agenda that will link the struggle against the war in Iraq to the struggles against injustice at home. We will march for an end to war abroad and an end to the war on our communities.

March for Peace

Now is the time to put the nation on a new course. If this war is to end and our social problems are to be seriously addressed then all of us who want peace and justice must act now. Everyone that wants an end to the war is invited to join us in Newark on August 25th. Let us all march together for peace.

We will demand an immediate end to the U.S. war on Iraq and the closing of U. S. military bases there, the return home of all U.S. troops now, adequate care for the troops upon their return, the cutoff of funding for the war in Iraq and the redirection of those funds towards domestic and social programs. We will call upon the Bush Administration to repair the damage done by U.S. military forces in Iraq. We will also demand an end to the war in Afghanistan and that no future wars be initiated against Iran or other countries.

March for Human Rights

We will demand the restoration and preservation of human rights, constitutional rights and civil liberties, which have been steadily eroded by the Bush administration in the name of the “war on terror.“ We will demand an end to the use of torture, extraordinary renditions (secret abductions), secret trials and prisons, indefinite detentions, denial of the right of habeas corpus, racial profiling, use of banned weapons, and further violations of the Geneva Conventions and international law against individuals whether they are U. S. citizens or residents, or citizens of other countries.

We will demand that the detainee facility at Guantanamo Bay be closed, and that the PATRIOT, Homeland Security and Military Commissions acts and the unlawful expansion of presidential power be repealed. We will call for justice and freedom for all political prisoners.

March for an End to Violence

We cannot call for an end to the war on Iraq while ignoring the war that is going on in the streets of the United States. Violence is engulfing communities throughout the nation. There is a state of emergency in many cities and towns. Every year thousands die from gun-related and other forms of violence in our country. The U.S. has one of the highest rates of homicide among the industrialized nations of the world. When we march on August 25th, we will call for unity in our communities, peace in our streets and an end to the violence that pervades U.S. society. We will demand an end to the flow of illegal drugs and guns into our communities. And we will demand an end to the grinding poverty and other economic and social conditions that drive so many towards drugs, crime, violence and death.

March for Equality

Forty-four years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke of a dream of racial equality. During the sixties, as a result of African Americans' struggle for freedom and justice some progress was made. However, since then many of the gains that were made have been rolled back or eliminated. Racial equality has not yet been realized for African Americans and other communities of color in our country. Racial inequality, discrimination, segregation, oppression, violence, and police brutality are still a part of everyday life in America. In fact, in some respects racial inequality and injustice is greater today than it was during Dr. King's lifetime.

On August 25th, let us march with renewed commitment for the realization of racial equality in the United States. We will call for an end to the poverty, unemployment, substandard schools and housing, and other adverse conditions that continue to plague African American, Latino, Native American and other communities of color. We will once again demand an end to police brutality and the establishment of truly empowered police review boards and agencies. We will demand equal voting rights and representation for District of Columbia residents. We will demand reparations for the descendants of Africans enslaved in the United States and the passage of H.R. 40, the Conyers reparations study bill.

We will march for equal rights and fair treatment for all people regardless of race, color, ethnicity, sex, class, nationality, religion, creed, disability or sexual orientation or preference. We will demand an end to racism, sexism and all forms of discrimination, oppression and violence. We call for an end to bias related violence, harassment and attacks against and unjust deportations of Muslim, Arab, Asian, and Latino citizens and immigrants.

March for Jobs and Justice

On that day, let us march for jobs and economic justice. We will demand the redirection of funds for the U.S. war on Iraq towards employment, housing, healthcare, education, Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and other domestic programs. During his lifetime Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. called upon Congress to enact into law an economic bill of rights. On August 25th, we will demand an economic bill of rights that includes the creation of a massive jobs program that pays a living wage, an increase in the minimum wage, health care for all people from the cradle to the grave and the passage of H.R. 676, the national health insurance bill.

We will call for economic democracy. We will demand an end to poverty, unemployment and homelessness. We will call for the passage of H.R. 4347, a bill to help end homelessness in the U.S. We will demand affordable housing for all and environmental justice. We will demand jobs programs to end the depression-level unemployment that exists in African American and other communities of color. We will call for economic development in our urban communities and the revitalization of our cities. We will demand the environmental clean up and funding for the reconstruction of the Gulf Coast and its communities. We will demand for justice, housing, jobs, and the right of return for the survivors of Hurricane Katrina. We will call for the creation of jobs to develop renewable sources of energy and to increase energy efficiency within our society in order to decrease our oil dependency and help stop global climate change.

On that day, we will march for the right of all workers to be organized and represented by unions, without fear of retribution by their employers for participating in union activities. We will demand fair and decent wages for immigrant workers, documented and undocumented, an end to unjust raids on immigrant communities and to the stealth deportations that separate and destroy families.

March for Accountability

On that day, let us march to demand accountability. Those responsible for the disaster caused by the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq and the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe must be held accountable. We will call for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney for their handling of the Iraq war and its resulting crimes against humanity and the Hurricane Katrina crisis.

March of History

The march is being held on August 25th to coincide with the 44th anniversary of the historic 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and with the second anniversary of the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe, which killed many and left hundreds of thousands displaced and devastated due to the failure of the federal government to adequately respond to their needs. Marching in Newark enables us to connect this event to the 40th anniversary commemoration of the 1967 Newark Rebellion, a major event in the struggle for racial justice. It also helps us to highlight the needs of our cities and the need for local organizing.

March for a Just Society and Peaceful World

The People’s March is sponsored by The Peace & Justice Coalition, which is comprised of more than 100 diverse grassroots organizations. The coalition calls upon everyone who wants an end to the war on Iraq to join the march and fill the streets of Newark on August 25th. We call upon people of all races, all people of good will across the country, and people from all walks of life to join us on that day.

We especially call upon historically oppressed communities, including African Americans, Latinos, Asians, Indigenous and other peoples of color who have been among those most opposed to this war to join us and make their opposition visible. On August 25th, let us march in the spirit of unity and hope, determined to keep the pressure on until the war in Iraq is ended and the ideal of a more just society, peaceful world and better life for all is finally realized.

Read more!

Black NJ Organizes Against the War [Part 1]

January 20 will see a most important anti-war conference in New Jersey and I have been unable to find much information about it on the Internet. Therefore I am taking the liberty of posting here what info I was able to dig up as a resource for activists--not just folks in NJ, but anyone who might go "Hmmm" at the idea of a grassroots, Black-initiated and Black-led anti-war conference. Go, thou, and do likewise!

It will be split into three posts. The first, this one, is the press release describing the event, driven in the main by the People's Organization for Progress, a splendid outfit which has been organizing in North Jersey around police brutality and other community issues for decades now, and which has taken a firm stand against the occupation of Iraq. The second is the rather striking list of sponsoring organizations. The third is the schedule of the conference itself.

NINETY-FOUR ORGANIZATIONS SPONSOR
STATEWIDE PEACE CONFERENCE
SCHEDULED FOR JANUARY 20 IN NEWARK, NJ

"The People's Peace Conference on the U.S. War in Iraq and Our Communities" sponsored by The Peace Coalition will be held Saturday, January 20, 2007, at the Rutgers School of Law, 123 Washington Street in Newark, New Jersey. The conference program will start at 9:00 a.m. and end at 5:00 p.m. Registration for the conference will begin at 8:00 a.m. The conference is open to the general public and admission is free.

The theme of the conference is "Breaking The Silence: The Grassroots Speak." The Peace Coalition is the organizer of the conference. The coalition is made up of ninety-four (94) organizations that have decided to become sponsors of the conference. It is composed of a broad spectrum of activist, human and civil rights, community, religious, civic, student, labor, peace, media and other grassroots groups.

"The Peace Coalition has three basic demands around which the conference is being organized. We want an immediate end to the war, the troops brought home now, and the money being spent for the war to be redirected toward domestic needs," POP chairman Lawrence Hamm stated.

"One of the main purposes of the conference is to educate the community about the relationship between what is happening with this unjust war and what is happening in our communities. We will discuss the relationships between the war abroad and repression at home, and increased military spending and decreased spending for domestic programs and how this is affecting our communities," stated Rev. William Howard, Pastor of Bethany Baptist Church in Newark.

"The war is affecting every person in this country. Everyone who wants peace should attend this conference. Hopefully, the conference will show ordinary people what they can do to bring this war to an end," said Annette Alston, President of the Newark Teachers Association.

"I would especially encourage African Americans, Latinos, and other people of color to attend. We must also make our voices heard on this issue. Just as Dr. Martin Luther King spoke out against the war in Vietnam we must speak out against this unjust war in Iraq," stated James Harris, State President of the New Jersey State Conference of the NAACP.

"It is our collective hope that the conference will produce an action agenda that can organize and mobilize our communities to bring about the kind of pressure needed to help bring this war to a quick end," said Jerry Harris, President of the New Jersey Black Issues Convention.

Some of the members of The Peace Coalition include (but are not limited to) the People's Organization For Progress (POP), Board of Deacons of Bethany Baptist Church, NJ State Conference NAACP, General Baptist State Convention of NJ, Newark Teachers Association, NJ Human & Civil Rights Association, Mayor Wayne Smith of Irvington, Assemblyman Craig Stanley, NJ Peace Action, NJ Millions More Movement Coalition, Black Women's History Conference, Mothers of Murdered Sons & Daughters (MOMSAD), New Jersey Black Issues Convention, New Jersey African-American Political Alliance, The Black Ministers' Council of New Jersey, Association of Black Law Students at Rutgers-Newark School of Law, Martin Luther King Committee of Elizabeth, Clinton Hill-South Ward Improvement Association, South Orange-Maplewood Martin Luther King Holiday Committee, Women In Support of the Million Man March (WISOMMM), Black Telephone Workers For Justice, NJ State Industrial Union Council, WBAI Radio, and City Belt magazine.

The conference program will include morning, midday, and afternoon convocations, workshops, a plenary assembly for voting on resolutions, and a speakout session that will give participants an opportunity to express their views on the war to the whole conference.

More than 50 activists, grassroots organizers, religious leaders, and elected officials will serve as speakers, presenters, and workshop panelists at the conference. The workshop topics include, The War and our Rights, The Impact of the War on Our Communities, How Do We Stop the War in Our Streets, The Role of Religious Institutions in Ending the War, Building the Student Anti-war Movement, Preventing Future Wars of Aggression by the United States, and How Do We End the War in Iraq.

Guest speakers and panelists will include among others Rev. William Howard, Pastor, Bethany Baptist Church, Lawrence Hamm, Chairman, People's Organization For Progress, Annette Alson, President, Newark Teachers Association, James Harris, State President of the NJ State Conference of the NAACP, Jerry Harris, President of the New Jersey Black Issues Convention, Congressman Donald Payne, author and activist Amiri Baraka, and Madeline Hoffman, Executive Director, NJ Peace Action.

"We hope that the outcomes of the conference will include major anti-war protests, voter registration drives and economic sanctions campaigns that will take place in the state during the next few years," Hamm said.

The conference is also being dedicated to the memory of Damu Smith, an African American peace activist, who founded Black Voices for Peace. Mr. Smith, suffering from cancer, died last year. Towards the end of his life he campaigned for an end to the U.S war in Iraq.

"We are trying to uphold the legacy of Damu Smith by increasing African American participation in the peace movement through this conference," Hamm said.

For registration and additional information interested persons can call (973) 801-0001.

Read more!

Black NJ Organizes Against the War [Part 2]

[Note: all these nifty pictures are by POP member Jon Levine, who's archived a lot of the shooting he's done for the group in recent years.]

This is the genuinely impressive list of sponsoring organizations and individuals who make up the Peace Coalition, which is sponsoring the July 20 conference. Please take just a minute to run your eyes over the list--it'll do your spirits good.

THE PEOPLE'S PEACE CONFERENCE
THE U.S. WAR IN IRAQ & OUR COMMUNITIES
"BREAKING THE SILENCE: THE GRASSROOTS SPEAK"

SATURDAY, JANUARY 20, 2007 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
REGISTRATION BEGINS 8:00 A.M. ADMISSION FREE
RUTGERS SCHOOL OF LAW-NEWARK
123 WASHINGTON STREET, NEWARK, NJ

SPONSORED BY THE PEACE COALITION:
People's Organization For Progress (POP),
NJ State Conference NAACP,
General Baptist State Convention of NJ, Inc.,
Board of Deacons of Bethany Baptist Church,
Newark Teachers Association,
NJ Human & Civil Rights Association,
Mayor Wayne Smith of Irvington,
Assemblyman Craig Stanley,
Association of Black Law Students at Rutgers-Newark School of Law (ABLS),
Martin Luther King Committee of Elizabeth,
NJ Peace Action,
Enough Is Enough Coalition,
NJ Millions More Movement Coalition,
Black Women's History Conference,
Mothers of Murdered Sons & Daughters (MOMSAD),
WBAI Radio,
City Belt,
New Jersey Black Issues Convention,
New Jersey African-American Political Alliance,
Clinton Hill-South Ward Improvement Association,
Street Warriors, Inc.,
CWA Local 1037,
South Orange-Maplewood Martin Luther King Holiday Committee,
Mt. Teman A.M.E. Church,
The Black Ministers' Council of New Jersey,
Teaneck Peace & Justice Coalition,
Women In Support of the Million Man March (WISOMMM),
Boycott Crime Committee,
Anti-Lynching Campaign,
Ras Baraka Civic Association,
Kidnapped African Descendants (KAD),
Reconstruct Economics for African Liberty (REFAL),
George Tillman Civic Association,
Black Telephone Workers For Justice,
Coalition For Peace Action,
School of African Philosophy,
Veterans for Peace-Chapter 21,
Africa Newark International, Inc.,
My Father Knows Best,
National Action Network-NJ Chapter,
Harlem Tenants Council,
United Youth Council,
Antiracism Committee-Unitarian Society of Ridgewood NJ,
Cuba Solidarity-NY,
Peace & Justice Committee-Unitarian Society of Ridgewood NJ,
Morristown Peace Vigil,
Northern New Jersey-National Organization for Women (NOW),
Onyx Society,
American Students of African Descent Association (ASADA),
Nubian Queendom,
International Youth Organization,
Central Jersey Coalition Against Endless War,
Rev. Malachi D. Rountree Ministries,
New Black Panther Party-Newark NJ Chapter,
Justice For Michael Anglin Coalition,
Parents Advocacy & Service Academy (PASA),
December 12th Movement,
NJ Solidarity - Activists for the Liberation of Palestine,
National Black Independent Political Party,
The Essex Green Party,
Socialist Party of New Jersey,
National Organization For Women of New Jersey,
Secondary Parent Council of Newark,
Striving Together Equals Progress (S.T.E.P.),
Rutgers-Newark National Lawyers Guild,
Black Cops Against Police Brutality (B-CAP),
Quest Ink, Inc.,
Uhuru,
NJ Labor Against War,
Dr. Benjamin Chavis Muhammad & The Hip Hop Summit Action Network,
Urban Issues Institute,
Central Ward Family Support Center,
Brotherhood Academy, Inc.-Essex County,
B.T.Kwanzaa Group-Roselle NJ,
Social Responsibility Committee-Central Unitarian Church,
Martin Luther King Association-Columbia HS,
NJ State Industrial Union Council (IUC),
Jersey City Peace Movement,
International Action Center,
Troops Out Now Coalition,
Unitarian Church of Montclair,
NJ State Council of Urban League Executives,
Stop Shootin', Inc.,
Organization of African American Unity,
Jamel Holley Civic Association,
National Action Network, Inc.,
International Concerned Family & Friends of Mumia Abu Jamal,
National Million Woman March,
Interreligious Foundation For Community Organization (IFCO)/Pastors For Peace,
The Civic Formation, Inc.,
National Association of Kawaida Organizations (NAKO),
Centro Hispano-Americano of Plainfield,
Join Another Mother In This Effort To Save Lives (J.A.M.E.L.),
NJ Chapter-The World Can't Wait

TO REGISTER CALL(973) 801-0001 ADMISSION IS FREE

STOP THE WAR! BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW! FUND PEOPLE'S NEEDS NOT WAR!
HONOR MARTIN LUTHER KING, STAND UP FOR PEACE & JUSTICE!
STOP THE WAR IN IRAQ, STOP THE WAR IN OUR STREETS!

Read more!

Black NJ Organizes Against the War [Part 3]

The two other posts under this heading should have given you the general idea of the conference. This simply let's those thinking of attending know what to expect.

PEOPLE'S PEACE CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

8:00 - 9:00 A.M. REGISTRATION & CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:45 - 9:00 A.M. ROLL CALL OF SPONSORING ORGANIZATIONS

9:00 - 10:00 MORNING GENERAL SESSION

10:00 - 12:00 P.M. WORKSHOPS:

THE WAR & OUR RIGHTS

THE IMPACT OF THE WAR ON OUR COMMUNITIES I

THE IMPACT OF THE WAR ON OUR COMMUNITIES II

HOW DO WE END THE WAR IN IRAQ

HOW DO WE STOP THE WAR IN OUR STREETS

THE ROLE OF RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS IN ENDING THE WAR

BUILDING THE ANTI-WAR STUDENT MOVEMENT

PREVENTING FUTURE U.S. WARS OF AGGRESSION

12:00 - 12:30 P.M. LUNCH SERVED


12:30 - 1:30 P.M. MIDDAY GENERAL SESSION

1:30 - 2:30 P.M. PLENARY SESSION: RESOLUTIONS FOR ACTION

2:30 - 3:30 P.M. AFTERNOON GENERAL SESSION

3:30 - 4:30 P.M. SPEAK OUT AGAINST THE WAR

4:30 - 5:00 P.M. CLOSING REMARKS

Read more!