Posted on 03/31/2002 4:57:26 PM PST by Dan from Michigan
3/31 UPDATE ON APRIL 20 SCENARIO FROM A.N.S.W.E.R. COALITION
Last Saturday, March 23, an agreement was reached between the principal coalitions calling anti-war demonstrations on April 20 to hold a unity rally that would be co-chaired and organized following the convergence of the respective marches on April 20. The International A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism) considered the decision to have a joint unity rally at the conclusion of a unified march to be a major step forward for the progressive movement.
We were disappointed to learn that the A20 Stop the War Coalition [also known as “United We March”] steering committee cancelled the decision to hold a co-chaired and co-organized joint rally, which was proposed at the March 23rd meeting by their delegation and agreed to by consensus. The A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition representatives were informed by the A20 [Stop the War coalition] delegates at a March 28th meeting that their representatives had made a “big mistake” by entering into the unity agreement.
The A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition is surprised by this decision. We moved the date of our demonstration to April 20 and have participated in a series of meetings among the principal coalitions. These meetings were initiated in response to the sentiment of thousands, if not tens of thousands, of activists from around the country who desire to participate the greatest display of unity possible on April 20.
We recognize, based on the writings and demands of the two coalitions, that there may be significant political differences between and within organizations and coalitions. In our negotiations of the past weeks, A.N.S.W.E.R. repeatedly sought to have an open process to discuss political differences that might be an obstacle to unity. There have been allusions by members of the A20 coalition to “differences” that may prevent unity but no specifics had been identified until the March 28th meeting.
One reason cited by the A20 coalition as to why they could not hold a joint program with A.N.S.W.E.R. and possibly others was their desire to create a “safe space to bring grassroots organizations who may not agree on the bombing of Afghanistan.” Another representative qualified this statement by saying it was an “extreme example.”
Another reason given by the A20 representatives was that having a unified joint rally with A.N.S.W.E.R. at the conclusion of Saturday, April 20 would actually diminish the number of people in attendance.
From the beginning, A.N.S.W.E.R., a broad coalition formed on September 14, 2001, has proceeded with its organizing based on the understanding that there are many different currents within the anti-war movement and that unity does not have to be based on an unanimity of political program. Rather, A.N.S.W.E.R. has proposed that for April 20th the various groups retain their own message, hold independent opening rallies, and then come together in the streets for a mass convergence of marchers leading to a final joint rally to show people around the U.S. and the world that our movement has enough strength and maturity to stand together against the Bush Administration’s war drive that threatens the people of the planet, and against the Administration’s racist attacks on civil rights at home.
The A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition is still open to a truly united closing rally.
A.N.S.W.E.R. will be proceeding with plans for a massive protest at the White House starting at 11:00 a.m., a march down Pennsylvania Avenue to a rally at Ashcroft’s Justice Department against racial and religious profiling, and then on to a concluding rally. We call on activists from around the country to take the next three weeks as an opportunity to mobilize thousands of people to come to Washington D.C. by bus, van and car caravan.
At this critical moment, the anti-war and anti-racist movement must stand with the Palestinian people living under occupation who are facing a reign of terror backed by the Bush administration. We must stand against the administration's policy of limitless war targeting Colombia, Afghanistan, the Philippines and other countries. We must uild solidarity between the peoples of the world and the people of the United States. We must oppose the massive Pentagon build-up and the development of new nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. We must demand money for jobs, education, housing and healthcare, not for new wars of aggression in the Third World.
In other words we want a free ride.
If twenty of these dweebs were sitting in a Haifa cafe along with one Jew, and a Hamas suicide bomber walked in, he'd cook himself off and blow all twenty-two of them to their respective rewards...and not care one bit that 20 of the people in there thought he was a hero. If one of these ANSWER maggots was trooping through Colombia, a band of FARC soldiers would kidnap him as quick as they would anyone else. If a couple of these A20 losers were in the Philippines saving the whales or something, the Abu Sayyaf wouldn't think twice about kidnapping and executing them just because they were American.
It must be nice to be that disconnected from reality. I wish I could do it sometimes (like when I have tight deadlines at work)!
}:-)4
Wow,a personal invite from the $^@(#&!.,how nice.
Characteristic of the breed.
Lenin and Trotsky didn't exactly see eye to eye either.
No doubt, that is very ironic.
It draws some ironic parallels to Klinton supporters (I don't know if these people are, but it's a good bet). Klinton supporters love Billary, would do anything for the Xlintons, and sing their praises. It's ironic that Bubba and Hitlery have no respect for them whatsoever. The Klintons think that their followers are a bunch of moronic peasants whose only purpose in life is to give them money and aren't worthy to wipe their backsides.
More than a little..heh..heh. Some on the left suspect IAC's Ramsery Clark is a deep cover CIA agent.From infoshop.org:
The International Action Center is a prominent Left organization located in New York City which is known for organizing large Left protests. What most people don't know is that an authoritarian Left organization stands behind the IAC, an organization known as the Workers World Party.Both organizations have been criticized by Left activists for supporting dictators such as Slobodan Milosevic and Saddam Hussein. They have also been criticized for their authoritarian activist methods and for their cooperation with the police.
The IAC are like the "Borg" of the Left. They always want to be friends with you and they want you to sign onto their projects. They get the momentum going for their projects by creating deceptive lists of endorsers and then they use this to manipulate other groups to sign on. A critical mass develops behind their event, which ends up being big enough to give the IAC the credibility that it is really interested in. As one activist recently explained:
"The IAC made a point of contacting many groups to sign on to International ANSWER. They immediately contacted various groups in the New York area for support and got it. They got folks as individuals to sign on and listing their organization (for informational purposes) which gives the illusion that those groups were for ANSWER even if those groups hadn't had time to even make a decision yet. They were willing to have anyone sign on, no litmus test of political principles required. Pacifists groups like the Jonah Catholic Worker House in Baltimore, or WWP's ideological rivals in the Freedrom Road Socialist Party. For each name they got added to their list of endorsers, that gave them more clout as being the first big demonstration against the war."The WWP is an authoritarian organization. Decisions about when and demos are going to be held are made by a small group of leaders. The WWP expects endorsing groups to participate under the banner of one of its front organizations, frequently the International Action Center and currently through the International A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition. This goes clearly against the non-hierarchical and democratic organizing models that have characterized the anti-globalization and anti-capitalist movements.
Another lefty critique:
The International Action Center: "Peace Activists" with a Secret Agenda?
Lenin and Trotsky didn't exactly see eye to eye either.
Actually, they got on very well. Now Trotsky and Stalin...
A.N.S.W.E.R. is a series of fronts, with a few exceptions, run by a few people from a central location. I have been doing an Order of Battle, Electric thinks I am crazy.
If you do a lot of Freepin' you see alot of the same people at all of these events, they claim to represent many different orgs. For example: I am a Republican, I belong to CU, RCCC, and The Republican Society, among others, what is common?
This is not a good example, but I think that you will get the Idea. The difference is as opposed to my example these groups are seperate and at all times are controled from the center.
If not hundreds of thousands, if not millions (works for Faracon and the M3 crowd),
Heck Billions of activists, trillions, a gogolplex of activists!
"OK.......well then...........hundreds. Hundreds of people who will come to D.C. and prote.......um........................................dozens. Dozens of people; that's it. Dozens of people who will................um.............er..............OK, two or three who will speak for the multitudes. Yes, two or three. That's you, Scotty, Sparky, and Leotis. Let's show 'em!!!!"
My memory is that Trotsky was murdered in Mexico City in 1937, long after Lenin had shuffled off this mortal coil. I should have specified Stalin.
Of course, I'm probably wrong on this date too.
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