Weary Brooklyn Christmas shoppers were unexpectedly entertained on Friday afternoon, Dec. 18, when a troupe of approximately 20 Granny Peace Brigade members and Raging Grannies sang revised Christmas carols condemning war toys at the TARGET Store in Flatbush's Atlantic Shopping Center simultaneously with a serious demonstration against the toxic playthings. This was the second protest in the grannies' recently-launched campaign called "NO MORE WAR TOYS, NO MORE WARS." The first action took place on December 4 at the Times Square Toys "R" Us store,
Although warned by the police earlier in the day to not attempt to conduct any mischief inside TARGET, the grannies nevertheless "invaded" the store at approximately 4 p.m. and quickly went to the toy department where they filled up four carts and some baskets with the most violent toys ever conceived.
The grannies then rode them down the escalator while unfurling many bright yellow banners imprinted with the black letters, "WAR IS NOT A GAME" and "NO MORE WAR TOYS." As they rode down to the next floor, they sang the famous John Lennon refrain, "Give Peace a Chance."
They intended to leave the toy-filled carts and baskets at the check-out counter, but by the time the elderly crusaders and the carts reached the bottom of the escalator, however, a bevy of policemen was awaiting them and requested that they leave the store, which they did, singing and displaying their many banners as they wended their way outside.
The toys they gathered are disgraceful, to say the least -- guns with repeat bullets, grenades and all manner of killing machines designed to arouse the bloodlust of impressionable young children and teen-agers. The grannies, who have been trying for years to end the destructive and immoral wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, feel these toys militarize America's young and pave the way to more and more killing in the guise of protecting our homeland, a presumption the grandmothers reject.
Once outside, on Flatbush Avenue, the grandmothers opened their special songbooks and sang a number of Christmas carols which the women have revised with lyrics pleading that people not buy war toys. For, instance:
HARK, THE HERALD ANGELS SING
NOW, AT LAST, LET FREEDOM RING.
PEACE ON EARTH AND MERCY MILD,
NATIONS MUST BE RECONCILED.
LET US PUT THE BOMBS AWA-A-Y!
BRING OUR TROOPS HOME, NOW, TODA-A-Y
WARS ARE NOT FOR TOYS, OR A GAME.
DON'T TEACH OUR KIDS TO KILL AND MAIM!
GIVE THE CHILDREN TOYS OF PEACE,
HELP THEM TO LEARN THAT WARS MUST CEASE.
Passersby stopped to enjoy the concert, and many told the grandmothers that they agreed with them. The protesters gave out hundreds of leaflets listing appropriate toys for parents to buy rather than the horrendous ones glorifying lethal battle.
Other members of the grannies' audience included the eight or so cops assigned to protect Brooklyn from the dangerous aged terrorists. The officers stood across from the women throughout their entire songfest trying without success to hide their delight at the grandmas' vocal offerings.
Said the oldest singer, Lillian Pollak, hale and active at 94, "We won't be here forever, and if we can't stop these deplorable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in our lifetime, we must at least do all within our power to convince our grandchildren that they must end the cycle of killing and waste we have been engaging in for far too long. We're determined to continue this struggle to bring back appropriate and healthy toys."
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
PEACE GRANNIES TELL TOYS "R" US: "WAR TOYS 'R' NOT US"
Shoppers in the Times Square Toys "R" Us flagship store were startled
on Friday, December 5, when they looked up at the giant ferris wheel in the middle of the store and saw fifteen people riding it while unfurling bright yellow banners inscripted with the words "NO MORE WAR TOYS" and "WAR IS NOT A GAME!" As the wheel slowly revolved around, the mischief makers sang over and over John Lennon's famous refrain, "All We Are Saying Is Give Peace a Chance."
This caper was how the legendary Granny Peace Brigade launched their latest anti-war campaign, entitled "NO MORE WAR TOYS, NO MORE WARS." Fed up with the proliferation of obscenely violent war toys, the grannies created this latest protest action in an effort to get the poisonous stuff off the shelves, thereby, hopefully, decreasing the militarization of our youth.
The grandmothers think their campaign is particularly timely coming on the heels, as it did, of the President's disappointing announcement of more troops being sent to Afghanistan. "Violence begets violence," said Barbara Walker, a founding member of the Brigade. "These awful toys indoctrinate our young with the concept that war is the preferred tactic to conduct our foreign policy. Such a mind set emboldens our leaders to supplant peaceful negotiation and diplomacy with bombs and bloodshed. We are trying to eradicate the cancer at its core."
While the granny ferris wheel gang rotated through the air, another group of grannies wearing Santa Claus hats sang revised versions of favorite Christmas carols near the inside entrance. For instance:
JOY TO THE WORLD
JOY TO THE WORLD, LET'S END EACH WAR
LET EARTH BE PEACEFUL ONCE MORE
LET ALL THE GIRLS AND BO-O-YS
BUY NO MORE WA-A-R T-O-OYS
AND ALL OUR TROOPS COME BACK
FROM AFGHANINSTAN AND IRAQ
OHH, WA-A-R IS NOT THE WAY
TO LIVE OR PLAY
NO, WA-A-R IS NOT THE WAY
TO LIVE OR PLAY!
After about 20 minutes, store personnel politely asked the troupe of protesters to get off the ferris wheel. The riders stalled as long as they could without creating mayhem, and finally complied. Don't ever think you can't get a free ride in this country, because the grannies did. Store employees refunded each granny's entrance fee to the wheel. So, though we vehemently disapprove of Toys "R" Us's stock of despicable war toys, we must give them credit for treating us with great respect and courtesy.
After all the grannies and their compatriots left the store, including the carol singers, who were also politely asked to leave, they banded immediately outside the store on Broadway and sang the revised carols for another hour. Passersby enjoyed the concert and many gave the singers the thumbs up sign of approval.
Said the oldest Granny Peace Brigade member, Lillian Pollak, hale and active at 94, "We won't be here forever, and if we can't stop these deplorable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in our lifetime, we must at least do all within our power to teach our grandchildren while we are still here that war and violence are not the answer."
on Friday, December 5, when they looked up at the giant ferris wheel in the middle of the store and saw fifteen people riding it while unfurling bright yellow banners inscripted with the words "NO MORE WAR TOYS" and "WAR IS NOT A GAME!" As the wheel slowly revolved around, the mischief makers sang over and over John Lennon's famous refrain, "All We Are Saying Is Give Peace a Chance."
This caper was how the legendary Granny Peace Brigade launched their latest anti-war campaign, entitled "NO MORE WAR TOYS, NO MORE WARS." Fed up with the proliferation of obscenely violent war toys, the grannies created this latest protest action in an effort to get the poisonous stuff off the shelves, thereby, hopefully, decreasing the militarization of our youth.
The grandmothers think their campaign is particularly timely coming on the heels, as it did, of the President's disappointing announcement of more troops being sent to Afghanistan. "Violence begets violence," said Barbara Walker, a founding member of the Brigade. "These awful toys indoctrinate our young with the concept that war is the preferred tactic to conduct our foreign policy. Such a mind set emboldens our leaders to supplant peaceful negotiation and diplomacy with bombs and bloodshed. We are trying to eradicate the cancer at its core."
While the granny ferris wheel gang rotated through the air, another group of grannies wearing Santa Claus hats sang revised versions of favorite Christmas carols near the inside entrance. For instance:
JOY TO THE WORLD
JOY TO THE WORLD, LET'S END EACH WAR
LET EARTH BE PEACEFUL ONCE MORE
LET ALL THE GIRLS AND BO-O-YS
BUY NO MORE WA-A-R T-O-OYS
AND ALL OUR TROOPS COME BACK
FROM AFGHANINSTAN AND IRAQ
OHH, WA-A-R IS NOT THE WAY
TO LIVE OR PLAY
NO, WA-A-R IS NOT THE WAY
TO LIVE OR PLAY!
After about 20 minutes, store personnel politely asked the troupe of protesters to get off the ferris wheel. The riders stalled as long as they could without creating mayhem, and finally complied. Don't ever think you can't get a free ride in this country, because the grannies did. Store employees refunded each granny's entrance fee to the wheel. So, though we vehemently disapprove of Toys "R" Us's stock of despicable war toys, we must give them credit for treating us with great respect and courtesy.
After all the grannies and their compatriots left the store, including the carol singers, who were also politely asked to leave, they banded immediately outside the store on Broadway and sang the revised carols for another hour. Passersby enjoyed the concert and many gave the singers the thumbs up sign of approval.
Said the oldest Granny Peace Brigade member, Lillian Pollak, hale and active at 94, "We won't be here forever, and if we can't stop these deplorable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in our lifetime, we must at least do all within our power to teach our grandchildren while we are still here that war and violence are not the answer."
Thursday, December 3, 2009
BEAUTIFUL RESPONSE TO MY POEM
DEAR READERS: I RECEIVED A WONDERFUL LETTER FROM ANOTHER ANTI-WAR GRANNY, LIZ AXTELL, WHICH I WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU:
"Dear Joan,
I read your most recent post on the Anti-War Granny website, and felt empathy for you as you expressed your disappointment and dashed hopes regarding President Obama.
Now that it is official that he is escalating our military involvement in Afghanistan, I thought it an appropriate time to tell you some of what I am thinking. Perhaps you may not like what I have to say, but if I were meeting with you and the other grannies in New York, I would be saying the same things.
Let's face it, by and large, the policies and actions of the Obama Administration and the Democratic controlled Congress have been a disaster. Not just regarding Afghanistan-Iraq-Pakistan, but also regarding health care reform, the banking situation, home foreclosures, unemployment, etc. The Democrats in Congress and the Obama administration have no balls; they keep backing down and caving in to the Republicans, Wall Street, insurance companies, etc., and thumbing their noses at the very people who got them elected.
Several years ago, I changed my voting registration from Democratic to independent ( called unaffiliated in North Carolina). Like many people, I have called members of Congress, written letters, signed petitions, called the White House, etc. Folks in Washington D.C. are not listening--they are in a world of their own, divorced from the American people. The only thing they are interested in is remaining in power. It is time to think about a change in tactics. Cindy Sheehan spoke here in Raleigh a few weeks ago to a large audience and said the same thing.
Above all, the anti-war/peace movement must be independent and not be an appendage of the Democratic Party. I refuse to lift a finger to help any candidate get elected who supports our continued occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and votes to fund our wars there. I am tired of the rhetoric; actions (or inactions) speak louder than words.
Sincerely,
Liz Axtell
Raleigh, North Carolina"
"Dear Joan,
I read your most recent post on the Anti-War Granny website, and felt empathy for you as you expressed your disappointment and dashed hopes regarding President Obama.
Now that it is official that he is escalating our military involvement in Afghanistan, I thought it an appropriate time to tell you some of what I am thinking. Perhaps you may not like what I have to say, but if I were meeting with you and the other grannies in New York, I would be saying the same things.
Let's face it, by and large, the policies and actions of the Obama Administration and the Democratic controlled Congress have been a disaster. Not just regarding Afghanistan-Iraq-Pakistan, but also regarding health care reform, the banking situation, home foreclosures, unemployment, etc. The Democrats in Congress and the Obama administration have no balls; they keep backing down and caving in to the Republicans, Wall Street, insurance companies, etc., and thumbing their noses at the very people who got them elected.
Several years ago, I changed my voting registration from Democratic to independent ( called unaffiliated in North Carolina). Like many people, I have called members of Congress, written letters, signed petitions, called the White House, etc. Folks in Washington D.C. are not listening--they are in a world of their own, divorced from the American people. The only thing they are interested in is remaining in power. It is time to think about a change in tactics. Cindy Sheehan spoke here in Raleigh a few weeks ago to a large audience and said the same thing.
Above all, the anti-war/peace movement must be independent and not be an appendage of the Democratic Party. I refuse to lift a finger to help any candidate get elected who supports our continued occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and votes to fund our wars there. I am tired of the rhetoric; actions (or inactions) speak louder than words.
Sincerely,
Liz Axtell
Raleigh, North Carolina"
Thursday, November 26, 2009
THE BROKEN THREAD
I was such a believer. Oh, how I believed!
The sun would shine again, the stars would twinkle,
the long night would be over and we would start anew.
Gone the wars, the torture, the bombs, the hideous inequities and disgraces perpetrated by his predecessor.
I dipped into my vanishing coffers and sent $10, $15, $25,
over and over again,
I called surly strangers in Ohio and hate-filled racists in Pennsylvania,
I wrote a song, "Grandmama for Obama,"
and paid from my meager pension to have it video-taped for YouTube.
I performed, I spoke, I leaflet-ed, I cajoled, I argued.
The pay-off was delicious!
There he stood in the full majesty of his brilliance and promise
and I wept with joy.
Months passed,
but we were still mired in Iraq, the Guantanamo occupation still flourished,
single payer was dropped, billions were given away to the financial thugs.
On and on the disappointments accumulated.
But, it's Him, the Great One, he will come through!
He WILL come through! He MUST come through!
I waited, clinging ever more desperately
to the flimsy thread that bound my faith to Him.
And, then came the news.
More troops to Afghanistan, he ordered.
More troops into the hopeless morass of the unwinnable war.
More needless death and destruction.
Why?
It was then that sadly, finally, the thread broke.
The sun would shine again, the stars would twinkle,
the long night would be over and we would start anew.
Gone the wars, the torture, the bombs, the hideous inequities and disgraces perpetrated by his predecessor.
I dipped into my vanishing coffers and sent $10, $15, $25,
over and over again,
I called surly strangers in Ohio and hate-filled racists in Pennsylvania,
I wrote a song, "Grandmama for Obama,"
and paid from my meager pension to have it video-taped for YouTube.
I performed, I spoke, I leaflet-ed, I cajoled, I argued.
The pay-off was delicious!
There he stood in the full majesty of his brilliance and promise
and I wept with joy.
Months passed,
but we were still mired in Iraq, the Guantanamo occupation still flourished,
single payer was dropped, billions were given away to the financial thugs.
On and on the disappointments accumulated.
But, it's Him, the Great One, he will come through!
He WILL come through! He MUST come through!
I waited, clinging ever more desperately
to the flimsy thread that bound my faith to Him.
And, then came the news.
More troops to Afghanistan, he ordered.
More troops into the hopeless morass of the unwinnable war.
More needless death and destruction.
Why?
It was then that sadly, finally, the thread broke.
Friday, November 6, 2009
GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE WOMEN IN THEIR 90'S TO PERFORM IN SKIT FOR THEATERS AGAINST WAR
Lillian Pollak, 94 years old, and Lillian Lifflander, 90, both members of the Granny Peace Brigade, will be lead actors in a skit to be performed in Manhattan Monday evening, Nov. 9, 6-7 p.m., in the THAW (Theaters Against War) Monday vigil outside the Metropolitan Correctional Center, where U.S. citizen Syed Fahad Hashmi has been held for two years plus. The skit, written by Granny Peace Brigade author and ASCAP songwriter Joan Wile, also will feature other grandmothers in the group, Jenny Heinz, Ann Shirazi, and Barbara Walker. The sketch is titled, "If They Take You in the Morning, They Will Be Coming for Us That Night," a quote from writer James Baldwin.
This will be the fourth vigil held by THAW on behalf of Fahad, who has been imprisoned so long in complete isolation without a trial. The first vigil featured actors Kathleen Chalfant and Wallace Shawn, the second actor Bill Irwin, and the third was tagged Playwright's Night. Fahad's brother and parents have been present at the vigils, and have spoken movingly about their family's agony.
The vigils are being filmed and are available on YouTube under the heading, "Radio Free Fahad."
THAW has instituted these vigils as a way of hopefully bringing to public attention the plight of Mr. Hashmi, who has been inhumanely incarcerated on the shaky premise that he took part in an act of terrorism.
"We are participating in these crucial actions because we are so upset that our government can hold people like Mr. Hashmi indefinitely in such mind-destroying conditions in defiance of the Constitution and the Geneva Convention," said Brigader Barbara Walker. "We would never allow another country to treat one of our citizens the way we ourselves are treating this gentleman."
The Granny Peace Brigade, a leading anti-war organization, became internationally known when 18 grandmother members were arrested and jailed in October 2005 when they tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting center hoping to replace young people in harm's way.
Said 94-year old Lillian Pollak, one of the actors in the upcoming Monday skit, "I hope people will be inspired to keep on keeping on when they see me at my age out there being active, creative and positive."
This will be the fourth vigil held by THAW on behalf of Fahad, who has been imprisoned so long in complete isolation without a trial. The first vigil featured actors Kathleen Chalfant and Wallace Shawn, the second actor Bill Irwin, and the third was tagged Playwright's Night. Fahad's brother and parents have been present at the vigils, and have spoken movingly about their family's agony.
The vigils are being filmed and are available on YouTube under the heading, "Radio Free Fahad."
THAW has instituted these vigils as a way of hopefully bringing to public attention the plight of Mr. Hashmi, who has been inhumanely incarcerated on the shaky premise that he took part in an act of terrorism.
"We are participating in these crucial actions because we are so upset that our government can hold people like Mr. Hashmi indefinitely in such mind-destroying conditions in defiance of the Constitution and the Geneva Convention," said Brigader Barbara Walker. "We would never allow another country to treat one of our citizens the way we ourselves are treating this gentleman."
The Granny Peace Brigade, a leading anti-war organization, became internationally known when 18 grandmother members were arrested and jailed in October 2005 when they tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting center hoping to replace young people in harm's way.
Said 94-year old Lillian Pollak, one of the actors in the upcoming Monday skit, "I hope people will be inspired to keep on keeping on when they see me at my age out there being active, creative and positive."
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
PEACE GRANNIES EMBRACE THE HEALTH CARE ISSUE
New York City peace grannies -- the Granny Peace Brigade and its sister group, Grandmothers Against the War -- who have heretofore focused on urging an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, have expanded our horizons to the fight for universal health care.
"These are two issues of extreme urgency to the U.S." said Barbara Walker, a member of both granny groups, "and each is at a critical juncture. The issues really can't be separated, as the gross funding for the unnecessary and doomed wars wastes money which could be used to cover all citizens' health needs."
Nine grandmas participated in an action held on Sept. 29, 2009, in front of the Bristol-Myers Squibb and Aetna insurance companies. In addition, there was a gaggle of Raging Grannies singing their satiric new lyrics to old standards. A surprisingly large turnout gathered in front of Bristol-Myers, and after a rally and a picket line which circled in front of the company's building, walked approximately 13 blocks down Park Avenue to the Aetna building, where they again formed a picket line for about an hour. A number of disabled people in wheelchairs participated in the action, adding to the drama of the occasion and demonstrating effectively the need for reform.
Earlier in the day, 16 protesters were arrested inside the Aetna building when they refused to leave until Aetna changed their policies (in both senses of the word). Among the arrestees was another of our Granny Peace Brigade women. She along with the other arrestees, was held in jail for 26 hours.
With the wars and the battle for good health coverage at critical crossroads right now, we grandmothers are busy trying to cover it all. We continue to hold our regular Wednesday afternoon Rockefeller Center peace vigils, with special emphasis on trying to convince Barack Obama to review his Afghanistan policy and withdraw troops there rather than escalate them. This is very important at this time as reports in the media indicate he is conferring on his Afghan policy with the objective possibly of changing it (remember that word, "Change," Mr. President).
We grannies are also holding regular "phone-athons" in public spaces where we offer our cell phones free of charge to passers-by in order that they may call their congressional representatives regarding shutting down the wars.
We are also organizing for our annual No Bases Teach-in Nov. 8, which this year will concentrate on U.S. military bases throughout the Pacific -- Japan, the Philippines and South Korea. It is the grandmothers' conviction that the 1,000 plus installations throughout the world are very destructive and counter-productive, not to mention cost-inefficient, and most should be permanently closed.
Counter-recruitment is another granny focus, in which we distribute Opt-Out literature to students, parents and faculty at high schools and colleges and lecture at PTA and other meetings.
Since our arrest in October 2005, which put us on the map, so to speak, as a significant anti-war force, we grandmothers have engaged in all the above plus many other endeavors. Our grandmother energy, dedication and creativity demonstrate to all that older people can play vital roles all their lives for the betterment of the world and themselves.
And, now we will devote some of that energy and commitment to the desperate need for a single payer health care plan. Maybe we won't live to benefit from universal health care ourselves, but we're going to make damned sure that our kids and grandkids get the opportunity for affordable and decent coverage. Watch for further news on this subject -- we've just begun to fight!
"These are two issues of extreme urgency to the U.S." said Barbara Walker, a member of both granny groups, "and each is at a critical juncture. The issues really can't be separated, as the gross funding for the unnecessary and doomed wars wastes money which could be used to cover all citizens' health needs."
Nine grandmas participated in an action held on Sept. 29, 2009, in front of the Bristol-Myers Squibb and Aetna insurance companies. In addition, there was a gaggle of Raging Grannies singing their satiric new lyrics to old standards. A surprisingly large turnout gathered in front of Bristol-Myers, and after a rally and a picket line which circled in front of the company's building, walked approximately 13 blocks down Park Avenue to the Aetna building, where they again formed a picket line for about an hour. A number of disabled people in wheelchairs participated in the action, adding to the drama of the occasion and demonstrating effectively the need for reform.
Earlier in the day, 16 protesters were arrested inside the Aetna building when they refused to leave until Aetna changed their policies (in both senses of the word). Among the arrestees was another of our Granny Peace Brigade women. She along with the other arrestees, was held in jail for 26 hours.
With the wars and the battle for good health coverage at critical crossroads right now, we grandmothers are busy trying to cover it all. We continue to hold our regular Wednesday afternoon Rockefeller Center peace vigils, with special emphasis on trying to convince Barack Obama to review his Afghanistan policy and withdraw troops there rather than escalate them. This is very important at this time as reports in the media indicate he is conferring on his Afghan policy with the objective possibly of changing it (remember that word, "Change," Mr. President).
We grannies are also holding regular "phone-athons" in public spaces where we offer our cell phones free of charge to passers-by in order that they may call their congressional representatives regarding shutting down the wars.
We are also organizing for our annual No Bases Teach-in Nov. 8, which this year will concentrate on U.S. military bases throughout the Pacific -- Japan, the Philippines and South Korea. It is the grandmothers' conviction that the 1,000 plus installations throughout the world are very destructive and counter-productive, not to mention cost-inefficient, and most should be permanently closed.
Counter-recruitment is another granny focus, in which we distribute Opt-Out literature to students, parents and faculty at high schools and colleges and lecture at PTA and other meetings.
Since our arrest in October 2005, which put us on the map, so to speak, as a significant anti-war force, we grandmothers have engaged in all the above plus many other endeavors. Our grandmother energy, dedication and creativity demonstrate to all that older people can play vital roles all their lives for the betterment of the world and themselves.
And, now we will devote some of that energy and commitment to the desperate need for a single payer health care plan. Maybe we won't live to benefit from universal health care ourselves, but we're going to make damned sure that our kids and grandkids get the opportunity for affordable and decent coverage. Watch for further news on this subject -- we've just begun to fight!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
MY NEW SONG VIDEO ON HEALTH CARE, "PLEASE COVER ME"
HEAR JOAN WILE'S NEW SONG.
"PLEASE COVER ME,"
ON YOUTUBE VIDEO,
ADVOCATING PUBLIC OPTION FOR HEALTH CARE
(sorry, you'll have to copy and paste)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3M_iGyer_g
GRANDMOTHERS AGAINST THE WAR FOUNDER-DIRECTOR AND GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE CO-FOUNDER, JOAN WILE, AN ASCAP SONGWRITER, AND NINA KRSTIK, A PUBLIC TELEVISION DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER, HAVE CREATED A NEW VIDEO ADVOCATING FOR SINGLE PAYER/PUBLIC OPTION HEALTH CARE REFORM, WITH JOAN'S NEW SONG, "PLEASE COVER ME," AS THE TEXT. IT IS HOPED THAT THIS VIDEO WILL ADD SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE PUBLIC OPTION SIDE OF THE DEBATE NOW IN THE FOREFRONT OF THE PUBLIC'S ATTENTION.
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY! THANK YOU!
"PLEASE COVER ME,"
ON YOUTUBE VIDEO,
ADVOCATING PUBLIC OPTION FOR HEALTH CARE
(sorry, you'll have to copy and paste)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3M_iGyer_g
GRANDMOTHERS AGAINST THE WAR FOUNDER-DIRECTOR AND GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE CO-FOUNDER, JOAN WILE, AN ASCAP SONGWRITER, AND NINA KRSTIK, A PUBLIC TELEVISION DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER, HAVE CREATED A NEW VIDEO ADVOCATING FOR SINGLE PAYER/PUBLIC OPTION HEALTH CARE REFORM, WITH JOAN'S NEW SONG, "PLEASE COVER ME," AS THE TEXT. IT IS HOPED THAT THIS VIDEO WILL ADD SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE PUBLIC OPTION SIDE OF THE DEBATE NOW IN THE FOREFRONT OF THE PUBLIC'S ATTENTION.
PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY! THANK YOU!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
MY NEW VIDEO OF MY SONG, "GUANTANAMO"
Please listen/watch this new video and pass it around. It is a musical indictment of our distressing policy about Guantanamo. Perhaps its circulation will help get it closed. I speak for myself and my two anti-war organiations, the Granny Peace Brigade, and Grandmothers Against the War. Listen to your granny!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_
Friday, July 10, 2009
GRANNIES HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN
WAR STILL NO. 1 ISSUE FOR PEACE GRANNIES
Two Vigil Protests Held Weekly
As most of America focuses on the death of Michael Jackson, Sarah Palin's garbled resignation interview and Gov. Sanford's marital straying, New York's peace grandmothers still concentrate on the all-important issue of war and peace. As they have since we invaded Iraq, the women and their supporters feel it is urgent that the troops come home from both Iraq and Afghanistan. "There has never been nor can ever be anything to be accomplished by these immoral wars other than death and destruction," said Barbara Walker, one of the peace grandmothers.
They have recently stepped up the momentum of their anti-war actions so that, in addition to maintaining their five-and-a-half plus years Wednesday Grandmothers Against the War vigil at Rockefeller Center, the sister group Granny Peace Brigade now holds a Friday "Costs of War" tableau protest at the Times Square recruitment center (re-named, laughably, the U.S. Military Career Center). In this event, the grannies have a choreographed Q & A routine displaying on posters the answers to such chanted questions as: How much does it cost to keep one soldier deployed in Iraq? How many Iraqi civilians killed? How many soldier suicides? How many starving Iraqi children?
The location at Times Square is very significant for the grannies, inasmuch as 18 of them were arrested and jailed there when they tried to enlist in October 2005 in order to replace America's grandchildren so they could live long lives like the grannies have been privileged to enjoy. They were on trial for 6 days in Manhattan's criminal court and were acquitted after their defense by civil liberties lawyer Norman Siegel and his associate, Earl Ward. The story traveled around the world overnight and was instrumental in jump-starting the anti-war movement, which had been largely quiescent before then.
The media is invited to either or both of these events any time. The Rockefeller Center vigil is held religiously every week no matter what the weather. The recruitment center action may be affected by the weather, so it is advisable to call me if it is raining.
ROCKEFELLER CENTER VIGIL
PLACE: West side of 5th Ave. between 49th and 50th Sts.
DAY AND TIME: Wednesday afternoons, 4:30 - 5:30 p.m.
TIMES SQUARE RECRUITING CENTER PROTEST
PLACE: Broadway and 43rd St.
DAY AND TIME: Fridays, noon to 1:30 p.m.
Two Vigil Protests Held Weekly
As most of America focuses on the death of Michael Jackson, Sarah Palin's garbled resignation interview and Gov. Sanford's marital straying, New York's peace grandmothers still concentrate on the all-important issue of war and peace. As they have since we invaded Iraq, the women and their supporters feel it is urgent that the troops come home from both Iraq and Afghanistan. "There has never been nor can ever be anything to be accomplished by these immoral wars other than death and destruction," said Barbara Walker, one of the peace grandmothers.
They have recently stepped up the momentum of their anti-war actions so that, in addition to maintaining their five-and-a-half plus years Wednesday Grandmothers Against the War vigil at Rockefeller Center, the sister group Granny Peace Brigade now holds a Friday "Costs of War" tableau protest at the Times Square recruitment center (re-named, laughably, the U.S. Military Career Center). In this event, the grannies have a choreographed Q & A routine displaying on posters the answers to such chanted questions as: How much does it cost to keep one soldier deployed in Iraq? How many Iraqi civilians killed? How many soldier suicides? How many starving Iraqi children?
The location at Times Square is very significant for the grannies, inasmuch as 18 of them were arrested and jailed there when they tried to enlist in October 2005 in order to replace America's grandchildren so they could live long lives like the grannies have been privileged to enjoy. They were on trial for 6 days in Manhattan's criminal court and were acquitted after their defense by civil liberties lawyer Norman Siegel and his associate, Earl Ward. The story traveled around the world overnight and was instrumental in jump-starting the anti-war movement, which had been largely quiescent before then.
The media is invited to either or both of these events any time. The Rockefeller Center vigil is held religiously every week no matter what the weather. The recruitment center action may be affected by the weather, so it is advisable to call me if it is raining.
ROCKEFELLER CENTER VIGIL
PLACE: West side of 5th Ave. between 49th and 50th Sts.
DAY AND TIME: Wednesday afternoons, 4:30 - 5:30 p.m.
TIMES SQUARE RECRUITING CENTER PROTEST
PLACE: Broadway and 43rd St.
DAY AND TIME: Fridays, noon to 1:30 p.m.
Monday, July 6, 2009
I DON'T WANNA HAVE SEX IN TWO BATHTUBS
Commentary on Cialis erectile dysfunction commercials
featuring an older man and a woman sitting in two bathtubs
CIALIS, CIALIS
YOU'RE A PAIN IN OUR NECKS
WHAT INCREDIBLE MALICE
PUSHING TWO-BATHTUB SEX
SEX IN TWO TUBS
WOULD PRODUCE NIGHTMARES, NOT DREAMS
LIKE TWO GIANT SUBS
IN TWO ROCKY STREAMS
DO WE DO IT IN ONE?
OR GET LAID ACROSS TWO?
THAT'S NOT MY IDEA OF FUN
LET'S SEE HOW YOU'D DO
ERECTIONS? FORGET IT!
I'LL LIVE HAPPILY WITHOUT
IF SEX ENDS, THEN LET IT,
I'D RATHER HAVE GOUT
featuring an older man and a woman sitting in two bathtubs
CIALIS, CIALIS
YOU'RE A PAIN IN OUR NECKS
WHAT INCREDIBLE MALICE
PUSHING TWO-BATHTUB SEX
SEX IN TWO TUBS
WOULD PRODUCE NIGHTMARES, NOT DREAMS
LIKE TWO GIANT SUBS
IN TWO ROCKY STREAMS
DO WE DO IT IN ONE?
OR GET LAID ACROSS TWO?
THAT'S NOT MY IDEA OF FUN
LET'S SEE HOW YOU'D DO
ERECTIONS? FORGET IT!
I'LL LIVE HAPPILY WITHOUT
IF SEX ENDS, THEN LET IT,
I'D RATHER HAVE GOUT
Saturday, July 4, 2009
ASTOUNDING GRANDMAMAS RECITE FOUNDING PAPAS' WORDS
Forsaking picnics and hotdog contests, two staples of New York City July 4 celebrations, area peace grandmothers held a unique holiday event, the Third Annual Reading of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence in beautiful Strawberry Fields. The readings were conducted on a gorgeous day in Yoko Ono's Central Park oasis dedicated to the memory of her husband, John Lennon. It is believed that this celebration is unique in the United States.
More than 100 people attended, many volunteering to read various amendments. Among the readers were 94-year-old Marie Runyon, and 90-year-old Molly Klopot, both members of the legendary Granny Peace Brigade. Marie and Molly were arrested and jailed in October 2005 when they, along with 16 other Brigade women, attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station.
The grannies were on trial for 6 days in Criminal Court, defended successfully by eminent civil liberties and Constitutional scholar, Norman Siegel, who led the ceremonies today. At times, Siegel commented on how some of the amendments were being subverted today, as well as giving interesting background information on the creation of the documents. For instance, he pointed out how Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution specifies that only Congress shall declare war, and yet since the end of World War 2, we've been involved in too many wars not declared by that body in too many places we shouldn't have been and shouldn't now be. He also explained that the 1st Amendment, which guarantees the right of citizens to peaceably assemble has been abused right in Central Park where it is now forbidden to gather in large groups to peacefully protest. He urged the attendees to fight to "take back our park."
Siegel remarked: "The Constitutional system -- we should try it sometime. If we followed the Constitution, many of our civil rights and civil liberties problems would be substantially reduced."
Other readers included Progressive Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, Jonathan Tasini; long-time gay and civil rights activist, Andy Humm; members of the Raging Grannies (who sang some of their satiric songs about contemporary issues); Grandmothers Against the War; Military Families Speak Out; the Gray Panthers; Veterans for Peace, and Code Pink.
"These are the true patriots," remarked Norman Siegel, "The real Red, White and Blue. People who care about the principles on which our nation was founded and want to see them maintained and celebrated."
More than 100 people attended, many volunteering to read various amendments. Among the readers were 94-year-old Marie Runyon, and 90-year-old Molly Klopot, both members of the legendary Granny Peace Brigade. Marie and Molly were arrested and jailed in October 2005 when they, along with 16 other Brigade women, attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station.
The grannies were on trial for 6 days in Criminal Court, defended successfully by eminent civil liberties and Constitutional scholar, Norman Siegel, who led the ceremonies today. At times, Siegel commented on how some of the amendments were being subverted today, as well as giving interesting background information on the creation of the documents. For instance, he pointed out how Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution specifies that only Congress shall declare war, and yet since the end of World War 2, we've been involved in too many wars not declared by that body in too many places we shouldn't have been and shouldn't now be. He also explained that the 1st Amendment, which guarantees the right of citizens to peaceably assemble has been abused right in Central Park where it is now forbidden to gather in large groups to peacefully protest. He urged the attendees to fight to "take back our park."
Siegel remarked: "The Constitutional system -- we should try it sometime. If we followed the Constitution, many of our civil rights and civil liberties problems would be substantially reduced."
Other readers included Progressive Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, Jonathan Tasini; long-time gay and civil rights activist, Andy Humm; members of the Raging Grannies (who sang some of their satiric songs about contemporary issues); Grandmothers Against the War; Military Families Speak Out; the Gray Panthers; Veterans for Peace, and Code Pink.
"These are the true patriots," remarked Norman Siegel, "The real Red, White and Blue. People who care about the principles on which our nation was founded and want to see them maintained and celebrated."
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
"THE GRANNY 7" SCORE ONE FOR THE FIRST AMENDMENT
The "Granny 7," the seven intrepid women of the Granny Peace Brigade who were arrested and jailed on March 18, 2009, when they protested at the Times Square recruiting station against the Afghanistan war escalation and the retention of 50,000 troops in Iraq after the official withdrawal date, achieved a victory April 14 for the First Amendment principle protecting peaceful protest.
At a court appearance at Manhattan Community Court, it was declared that the City of New York "declined to prosecute." It would seem that the decision was influenced by the arrest of 18 Granny Peace Brigade members on Oct. 17, 2005, when they tried to enlist at the Times Square recruiting center to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way in Iraq. Those grannies were put on trial for six days in criminal court at the end of which they were acquitted. The resultant world-wide publicity did nothing to polish the image of the Big Apple -- photographs and television footage of old women being handcuffed and poured into paddy wagons for non-violent protest tended to make New York's Finest look more like New York's Meanest.
One can logically assume that the decision of the D.A.'s office not to prosecute on April 14 indicates a less punitive stance by the authorities toward peaceful dissent, a First Amendment privilege. It is hoped that this is indicative of a softer policy of New York City to public protest. Non-violent demonstrators during the last few years have met with harsh treatment, most notably at the Republican convention of 2004 when many were incarcerated for up to two days in a dirty old pier with no sleeping facilities. Prisoners had to sleep and sit on a filthy and oil-stained cement floor and were given hardly any food. Compensation has been paid to some as a result of lawsuits lodged against the City, and many cases are still pending.
The seven grannies are Jenny Heinz, 65; Beverly Rice, 70; Joan Pleune, 70 (one of the original Freedom Riders); Barbara Walker, 75; Nydia Leaf, 76; Carol Husten, 77, and Lillian Lifflander, 89 (a World War II veteran). Ms. Lifflander was unable to make the court appearance because she was admitted to a V.A. hospital with chest pains the night before.
Once the decision was announced, the Granny Peace Brigade marched down Broadway to the Times Square recruitment center, the scene of both their arrests, and briefly demonstrated, again putting a strip of yellow crime scene tape in front of the military building. They vowed to continue their struggle to persuade President Obama to reverse his Iraq and Afghan policies. The grannies mostly have been enthusiastic supporters of the President, but feel he is making a tragic mistake . "We are doing what he asked us to do -- to let him know when we think he is off on the wrong track," said one of the women.
The eminent civil liberties attorney, Norman Siegel, who represented the grandmothers in both the 2006 trial and the current case, stated: "These grannies are women of conscience. They acted in the great American tradition of peaceful non-violence. They protested our government's military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. They should be applauded."
At a court appearance at Manhattan Community Court, it was declared that the City of New York "declined to prosecute." It would seem that the decision was influenced by the arrest of 18 Granny Peace Brigade members on Oct. 17, 2005, when they tried to enlist at the Times Square recruiting center to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way in Iraq. Those grannies were put on trial for six days in criminal court at the end of which they were acquitted. The resultant world-wide publicity did nothing to polish the image of the Big Apple -- photographs and television footage of old women being handcuffed and poured into paddy wagons for non-violent protest tended to make New York's Finest look more like New York's Meanest.
One can logically assume that the decision of the D.A.'s office not to prosecute on April 14 indicates a less punitive stance by the authorities toward peaceful dissent, a First Amendment privilege. It is hoped that this is indicative of a softer policy of New York City to public protest. Non-violent demonstrators during the last few years have met with harsh treatment, most notably at the Republican convention of 2004 when many were incarcerated for up to two days in a dirty old pier with no sleeping facilities. Prisoners had to sleep and sit on a filthy and oil-stained cement floor and were given hardly any food. Compensation has been paid to some as a result of lawsuits lodged against the City, and many cases are still pending.
The seven grannies are Jenny Heinz, 65; Beverly Rice, 70; Joan Pleune, 70 (one of the original Freedom Riders); Barbara Walker, 75; Nydia Leaf, 76; Carol Husten, 77, and Lillian Lifflander, 89 (a World War II veteran). Ms. Lifflander was unable to make the court appearance because she was admitted to a V.A. hospital with chest pains the night before.
Once the decision was announced, the Granny Peace Brigade marched down Broadway to the Times Square recruitment center, the scene of both their arrests, and briefly demonstrated, again putting a strip of yellow crime scene tape in front of the military building. They vowed to continue their struggle to persuade President Obama to reverse his Iraq and Afghan policies. The grannies mostly have been enthusiastic supporters of the President, but feel he is making a tragic mistake . "We are doing what he asked us to do -- to let him know when we think he is off on the wrong track," said one of the women.
The eminent civil liberties attorney, Norman Siegel, who represented the grandmothers in both the 2006 trial and the current case, stated: "These grannies are women of conscience. They acted in the great American tradition of peaceful non-violence. They protested our government's military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. They should be applauded."
Saturday, March 28, 2009
BREAKING GRANNY'S HEART
I poured my hopes into you, Barack. I gave and gave from my limited fixed senior income to you. I hate calling strangers, but I did -- in Ohio and Pennsylvania, saying over and over that you would bring peace, that you would restore our good name throughout the world. I wrung my hands through the Hillary attacks, publishing satirical articles, songs and one-acts on the Internet to humiliate her. Oh, my God, the stress of those months as the polls undulated up and down. It's a wonder I didn't have a stroke.
And, then, Hallelujah, you did it. I rejoiced in your victory and thrilled at your inauguration. Your own grandmother couldn't have been more proud and joyful than I was.
I was sure you would be different than the other, and at last would end the war in Iraq. You said you would and I believed you. Although you did say that by going into Iraq we took our eye off Afghanistan, I was confident that you would manage that issue peacefully,so that we would extricate ourselves quickly from that potential quagmire as well. I was so happy to think that the world would respect us again and I wouldn't have to hang my head in shame any longer.
Then, you spoke of sending more troops to Afghanistan, but I assumed you were testing the waters, trying to accommodate the war heads, but would in short order change course, pull out and bring them home. How could you do otherwise? You were my beloved hero, a man of peace. I started petitions designed to urge you to re-think your policies in the Middle East, but in a respectful way, certain that you were just waiting for a ground swell so you could justifiably change direction.
One day recently, I read that you had ordered 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan and were retaining 50,000 in Iraq even after the official withdrawal. That was possibly the biggest heartbreak I'd experienced since my first love dumped me unceremoniously. Reluctantly, I helped organize a Granny Peace Brigade protest at the Times Square recruiting center. Some of us old ladies got arrested. Still, I thought that in the end you would do the right thing.
Today, you ordered more troops to Afghanistan. Don't you realize what you've done? Don't you see the destruction, the horrors such an action will cause? How is it you, of all people, can't realize that only diplomacy and humanitarian aid, not weapons, can resolve the crisis of terrorism?
You have broken my heart, Barack. Disillusionment happens all through life, so I should be used to it by now. But, this one hurts so bad.
WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTEN TO YOUR GRANNY?
And, then, Hallelujah, you did it. I rejoiced in your victory and thrilled at your inauguration. Your own grandmother couldn't have been more proud and joyful than I was.
I was sure you would be different than the other, and at last would end the war in Iraq. You said you would and I believed you. Although you did say that by going into Iraq we took our eye off Afghanistan, I was confident that you would manage that issue peacefully,so that we would extricate ourselves quickly from that potential quagmire as well. I was so happy to think that the world would respect us again and I wouldn't have to hang my head in shame any longer.
Then, you spoke of sending more troops to Afghanistan, but I assumed you were testing the waters, trying to accommodate the war heads, but would in short order change course, pull out and bring them home. How could you do otherwise? You were my beloved hero, a man of peace. I started petitions designed to urge you to re-think your policies in the Middle East, but in a respectful way, certain that you were just waiting for a ground swell so you could justifiably change direction.
One day recently, I read that you had ordered 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan and were retaining 50,000 in Iraq even after the official withdrawal. That was possibly the biggest heartbreak I'd experienced since my first love dumped me unceremoniously. Reluctantly, I helped organize a Granny Peace Brigade protest at the Times Square recruiting center. Some of us old ladies got arrested. Still, I thought that in the end you would do the right thing.
Today, you ordered more troops to Afghanistan. Don't you realize what you've done? Don't you see the destruction, the horrors such an action will cause? How is it you, of all people, can't realize that only diplomacy and humanitarian aid, not weapons, can resolve the crisis of terrorism?
You have broken my heart, Barack. Disillusionment happens all through life, so I should be used to it by now. But, this one hurts so bad.
WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTEN TO YOUR GRANNY?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
PEACE GRANNIES ARRESTED
Relax, everyone! The New York City police are solidly on the job these days. With rapists, murderers, bank robbers and dope peddlers, not to mention corporate thieves, rampant throughout the City, they made a significant dent in the crime statistics yesterday, March 18, when they arrested seven grandmothers aged 67 to 90 in Times Square.
The grannies, all members of the Granny Peace Brigade, were sent to jail while protesting at the Times Square recruiting station. Their arrest occurred during what is believed to be the first antiwar protest of the Obama Administration, in an attempt to urge the President to reconsider his decision to retain 50,000 troops in Iraq after the official withdrawal scheduled to be completed in the next 18 months and his order for 17,000 more troops sent to Afghanistan. The women feel strongly that these measures will only result in increased death and destruction for Americans, Iraqis and Afghanis and further solidify anti-American feeling throughout the world. Said 94-year-old Brigadier Marie Runyon, "Peace can only be achieved through diplomacy and humanitarian aid." The Granny Peace Brigade women are mostly strong supporters of Barack Obama but were responding to his request that his constituency pressure him to do the right thing when they feel he is on the wrong path.
The Brigade is not new to demonstrating at the Times Square recruiting station -- eighteen of the grannies were arrested and jailed on Oct. 17, 2005, when they attempted to enlist in the military to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way in Iraq. After a six-day trial in criminal court, they were acquitted.
The seven grannies were arrested at approximately 1:45 p.m. and taken to the Midtown South police precinct. They were not all released until early the next morning, a total of approximately 12 hours. Some of them became shaky and weak after many hours of not eating, but were given no food for another hour and a half.
Prior to the arrest, about 50 grannies and their supporters gathered on Military Island at which a press conference was held including speeches by mayoral candidate Rev. Billy, legendary Broadway actress and activist Vinie Burrows (one of the original 18 granny jailbirds), and a young member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, Matthis Chiroux. A sister group, the Raging Grannies, performed some of their original anti-war songs.
During the press conference, grandmothers wrapped yellow police crime scene tape around the ramp near the recruiting center, after which a group, some in wheelchairs and hanging on to walkers, assembled on the ramp leading to the center.
The team of Norman Siegel and Earl Ward, who successfully defended the grannies in 2005, will represent them in their current case, for which the grandmothers are profoundly grateful. Siegel, currently a candidate for New York City Public Advocate, is a favorite of the ladies for his continuous support of them.
The grannies, all members of the Granny Peace Brigade, were sent to jail while protesting at the Times Square recruiting station. Their arrest occurred during what is believed to be the first antiwar protest of the Obama Administration, in an attempt to urge the President to reconsider his decision to retain 50,000 troops in Iraq after the official withdrawal scheduled to be completed in the next 18 months and his order for 17,000 more troops sent to Afghanistan. The women feel strongly that these measures will only result in increased death and destruction for Americans, Iraqis and Afghanis and further solidify anti-American feeling throughout the world. Said 94-year-old Brigadier Marie Runyon, "Peace can only be achieved through diplomacy and humanitarian aid." The Granny Peace Brigade women are mostly strong supporters of Barack Obama but were responding to his request that his constituency pressure him to do the right thing when they feel he is on the wrong path.
The Brigade is not new to demonstrating at the Times Square recruiting station -- eighteen of the grannies were arrested and jailed on Oct. 17, 2005, when they attempted to enlist in the military to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way in Iraq. After a six-day trial in criminal court, they were acquitted.
The seven grannies were arrested at approximately 1:45 p.m. and taken to the Midtown South police precinct. They were not all released until early the next morning, a total of approximately 12 hours. Some of them became shaky and weak after many hours of not eating, but were given no food for another hour and a half.
Prior to the arrest, about 50 grannies and their supporters gathered on Military Island at which a press conference was held including speeches by mayoral candidate Rev. Billy, legendary Broadway actress and activist Vinie Burrows (one of the original 18 granny jailbirds), and a young member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, Matthis Chiroux. A sister group, the Raging Grannies, performed some of their original anti-war songs.
During the press conference, grandmothers wrapped yellow police crime scene tape around the ramp near the recruiting center, after which a group, some in wheelchairs and hanging on to walkers, assembled on the ramp leading to the center.
The team of Norman Siegel and Earl Ward, who successfully defended the grannies in 2005, will represent them in their current case, for which the grandmothers are profoundly grateful. Siegel, currently a candidate for New York City Public Advocate, is a favorite of the ladies for his continuous support of them.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
GRANNY PROTEST
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Joan Wile, 917-441-0651
GRANNIES TO RAISE CANE(S) AND CONCERNS 3-18
ABOUT OBAMA'S IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN POLICIES
Their Theme: Pack up Iraq, and Afghanistan Not Againistan
The indefatigable GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE is again in the forefront of the peace movement. They will hold the FIRST public anti-war protest of the Obama Administration on Wednesday, March 18, 12 o'clock p.m. at the Times Square recruiting center, 44th St. and Broadway. Their mission is to urge President Obama to re-think his policies toward Iraq and Afghanistan. Supporters of the President, they nevertheless feel he is making a mistake by proposing to leave 50,000 troops in Iraq after the official withdrawal and his order to deploy 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan. "He has requested that we let him know when we think he's on the wrong track, and we are taking him at his word," said 94-year-old former NYS Assemblywoman Marie Runyon, the oldest of the peace grannies.
To express their concerns, the grannies plan to symbolically wrap up the wars by wrapping police CRIME SCENE tape around the recruitment station. Prior to doing so, they will hold a press conference, beginning at noon, to which many actors and local officials have been invited. Among those who have agreed to speak are mayoral candidate Rev. Billy; actress Kim Weston-Moran, a star of the new off-Broadway hit, The Lonely Soldier Monologues (Women at War in Iraq); civil liberties attorney Norman Siegel; Broadway and off-Broadway legendary actress Vinie Burrows, and chaplain and Vietnam vet Hugh Bruce, a leader of the local Veterans for Peace chapter.
The GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE has chosen the Times Square location because of its historical importance to them. Eighteen of them were arrested there on Oct. 17, 2005, when they tried to enlist to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way and later were on trial for six days in criminal court at the end of which they were acquitted of all charges. Since then, they have acted as missionaries of peace, traveling in the United States and abroad speaking, performing, protesting and writing of their desire to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The grandmothers will be joined by other granny peace groups -- Grandmothers Against the War, who have held a weekly vigil at Rockefeller Center for over five years, and the Raging Grannies, who will sing a couple of their original anti-war songs. Members of Veterans for Peace will serve as a color guard for the event.
GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE jailbird Eva-Lee Baird explained, "The merchants of war are putting tremendous pressure on President Obama to lead the country down a path of destruction. We the people must pressure him to choose the path of peace."
DATE: Wed., March 18, RAIN OR SHINE
TIME: 12 o'clock noon
PLACE: Times Square recruiting center, 44th St. and Broadway
CONTACT: Joan Wile, 917-441-0651
GRANNIES TO RAISE CANE(S) AND CONCERNS 3-18
ABOUT OBAMA'S IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN POLICIES
Their Theme: Pack up Iraq, and Afghanistan Not Againistan
The indefatigable GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE is again in the forefront of the peace movement. They will hold the FIRST public anti-war protest of the Obama Administration on Wednesday, March 18, 12 o'clock p.m. at the Times Square recruiting center, 44th St. and Broadway. Their mission is to urge President Obama to re-think his policies toward Iraq and Afghanistan. Supporters of the President, they nevertheless feel he is making a mistake by proposing to leave 50,000 troops in Iraq after the official withdrawal and his order to deploy 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan. "He has requested that we let him know when we think he's on the wrong track, and we are taking him at his word," said 94-year-old former NYS Assemblywoman Marie Runyon, the oldest of the peace grannies.
To express their concerns, the grannies plan to symbolically wrap up the wars by wrapping police CRIME SCENE tape around the recruitment station. Prior to doing so, they will hold a press conference, beginning at noon, to which many actors and local officials have been invited. Among those who have agreed to speak are mayoral candidate Rev. Billy; actress Kim Weston-Moran, a star of the new off-Broadway hit, The Lonely Soldier Monologues (Women at War in Iraq); civil liberties attorney Norman Siegel; Broadway and off-Broadway legendary actress Vinie Burrows, and chaplain and Vietnam vet Hugh Bruce, a leader of the local Veterans for Peace chapter.
The GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE has chosen the Times Square location because of its historical importance to them. Eighteen of them were arrested there on Oct. 17, 2005, when they tried to enlist to replace America's grandchildren in harm's way and later were on trial for six days in criminal court at the end of which they were acquitted of all charges. Since then, they have acted as missionaries of peace, traveling in the United States and abroad speaking, performing, protesting and writing of their desire to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The grandmothers will be joined by other granny peace groups -- Grandmothers Against the War, who have held a weekly vigil at Rockefeller Center for over five years, and the Raging Grannies, who will sing a couple of their original anti-war songs. Members of Veterans for Peace will serve as a color guard for the event.
GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE jailbird Eva-Lee Baird explained, "The merchants of war are putting tremendous pressure on President Obama to lead the country down a path of destruction. We the people must pressure him to choose the path of peace."
DATE: Wed., March 18, RAIN OR SHINE
TIME: 12 o'clock noon
PLACE: Times Square recruiting center, 44th St. and Broadway
Friday, March 6, 2009
A PROGRESSIVE GRANDMOTHER SPEAKS HER MIND
by Joan Wile, founder/director, Grandmothers Against the War
and author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008 --available at amazon.com and in book stores)
At 77, I'm supposed to have gained a measure of wisdom. But, funny thing
-- I don't feel a bit wiser than I did at, say, 40. I am absolutely certain about maybe a few things -- I know absolutely, for instance, that it is wrong to discriminate against persons because of their color, ethnicity, sexual preference, or religious affiliations. But, it doesn't take wisdom to recognize this -- only humanity.
I should add Republicans to that list, but I can't quite bring myself to do so, because the Republicans (at least the ones who were in power) caused so much harm not only to our nation but to all people across the globe. Of course, they had a lot of help from the Democrats, I can't deny. I could do without some of the religious fundamentalists, too, if truth be told, but that is discriminatory and really not in keeping with my anti-prejudice beliefs. Still, I'd like to see them vanish from our politics. OK, I'm far from being pure in my ethics. Part of old age is, or should be, the ability to see one's failings, always easier to do in retrospect.
I have a few other certainties, but they have not been formulated from wisdom so much as recognizing the obvious. I try to be kind to children, animals, the poor, the sick and disabled, but it didn't require advancing years to assume these attitudes. I've always had them. Of course, the passing of time has given me a greater sense of responsibility so that I can implement these impulses more effectively.
For the last five plus years I have added a new certainty -- I've learned beyond the shadow of a doubt that our invasion of Iraq was wrong, wrong, wrong, and I have devoted a good part of my time and energy to trying to reverse it. I know now that any preemptive war we launch is wrong. This includes Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and all the countries we have threatened, or, in the case of Afghanistan, actually deployed troops and bombers to. Again, I can't claim wisdom in this regard. Any half-way intelligent person of any age can see the futility and the wrong-headedness of our military ventures.
Having been a child during World War 2, I must exclude that from my list of bad wars. Let the historians hash out whether we were justified in entering it -- I will always think we had to fight to eliminate the Nazis from our planet. And, speaking of WW2, I'd like to state how fortunate I've been to be an American. Despite all its flaws and mistakes, the fact is that we civilians here have never suffered as the people of other lands have. I never had to confront bombs destroying my home, my family or myself. Haven't we Americans been lucky, though? True, my beloved stepfather went off to Europe and didn't return -- not because he was killed but because the war did something to his head which prompted him to, well, not come back to my mother and me. A heartbreak, but not anywhere near the pain experienced by the children outside North America whose lives were destroyed by both sides of the conflict. Certainly, I can't erase Hiroshima and Nagasaki from my mind.
My belief that our invasion of Iraq was a horrendous misdeed led me to one of the most gratifying segments of my long life. Since 2003, I have devoted myself to organizing anti-war grandmothers to protest the war. Eventually, I put together Grandmothers Against the War, which began a vigil at Rockefeller Center on January 14, 2004, There were just two of us at first, but gradually we blossomed into a group of anywhere from 20 to 50 people standing on Fifth Avenue every Wednesday afternoon. We are by now something of a tourist attraction, which we don't mind a bit. People from all over the world see us and thereby learn that there is valid opposition to the war. Who can doubt grandmothers, after all? This was particularly important in the earlier years of the occupation when people from abroad often had the misconception that ALL Americans supported Bush's ill-advised attack.
We grannies then took more daring action. Eighteen of us, named the Granny Peace Brigade, decided to try and enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station. We were denied entrance, so exercised our constitutional right to non-violent dissent and refused to budge from the site. We were arrested and jailed and then put on trial for six days in criminal court for the ridiculous charge of blocking entrance to the recruitment center, something video footage of the event disproved.
Because of the notoriety we achieved through that incident, we began years of spectacular actions and travels in the U.S. and abroad to spread our message. This made for a fulfilling and adventurous old age for all us grannies, some in their late 80's and 90's. True, we've certainly had much excitement and gratification, but we feel great frustration and sadness, too, in that all our efforts as well as those of so many others have not yet brought America's grandchildren home from the war zones. We earnestly hope that President-elect Obama will rectify this. In that regard, please consider signing my Peace Grandmothers Petition to him requesting that we leave Iraq and Afghanistan now. All are invited to sign, not just grannies.
Peace Grandmothers Out of Iraq and Afghanistan
So, being a progressive grandmother has reaped many rewards in terms of allowing me to lead a productive and interesting life at an age when old women are stereotypically depicted as sitting in their rocking chairs knitting baby blankets and watching continuous soap operas. I tried to get this across in one of the many songs I've written about the grannies (hear it on YouTube -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXVAsHtitW0).
GRANNIES, LET'S UNITE
words and music by Joan Wile, ASCAP
I WAS SITTING AROUND WATCHING SOAPSJUST A USELESS OLD SAD SACKBUT THEN I HEARD THOSE REPUBLICAN DOPESSAY WE HAD TO BOMB IRAQ
WELL, I JUMPED UP RIGHT OUT OF MY SEATGOT MY BANNERS AND PEACE SIGNS OUT THEN I HURRIED DOWN TO THE STREET AND STARTED TO YELL AND SHOUT
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR TUSH
WE'VE GOT TO GO AFTER BUSHLET'S TORMENT THAT LYING JERKWIPE AWAY THAT REPULSIVE SMIRKOH, THEY GAVE US THE PATRIOT ACTWATCH OUR RIGHTS DRIBBLE DOWN THE TUBES SEE OUR CONSTITUTION ATTACKEDLET'S KEEP PESTERING THOSE ARROGANT BOOBS
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR BUTTS
FIGHT AGAINST THOSE MEDICARE CUTS
DEMONSTRATE AGAINST THE WAR
MAKE A STINK THEY CAN'T IGNORE
JUST FORGET YOUR RETIREMENT PURSUITS
AND GET OUT YOUR OLD MARCHING BOOTS
LET’S TELL CONDI, BUSH AND CHENEY
(speak) “YOUR POLICIES REALLY PAIN ME!”
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR FANNIES
WE NEED MORE FIGHTIN’ GRANNIES
LET’S SHOW ‘EM OUR GREAT GREY POWER
MAKE THOSE EVIL MONSTERS COWER
GRANDMAS, LET’S UNITE
WHILE WE ARE STILL UPRIGHT
LET’S PROTEST THAT PARASITE
WATCH OUT! WE’VE JUST BEGUN TO FIGHT!
and author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008 --available at amazon.com and in book stores)
At 77, I'm supposed to have gained a measure of wisdom. But, funny thing
-- I don't feel a bit wiser than I did at, say, 40. I am absolutely certain about maybe a few things -- I know absolutely, for instance, that it is wrong to discriminate against persons because of their color, ethnicity, sexual preference, or religious affiliations. But, it doesn't take wisdom to recognize this -- only humanity.
I should add Republicans to that list, but I can't quite bring myself to do so, because the Republicans (at least the ones who were in power) caused so much harm not only to our nation but to all people across the globe. Of course, they had a lot of help from the Democrats, I can't deny. I could do without some of the religious fundamentalists, too, if truth be told, but that is discriminatory and really not in keeping with my anti-prejudice beliefs. Still, I'd like to see them vanish from our politics. OK, I'm far from being pure in my ethics. Part of old age is, or should be, the ability to see one's failings, always easier to do in retrospect.
I have a few other certainties, but they have not been formulated from wisdom so much as recognizing the obvious. I try to be kind to children, animals, the poor, the sick and disabled, but it didn't require advancing years to assume these attitudes. I've always had them. Of course, the passing of time has given me a greater sense of responsibility so that I can implement these impulses more effectively.
For the last five plus years I have added a new certainty -- I've learned beyond the shadow of a doubt that our invasion of Iraq was wrong, wrong, wrong, and I have devoted a good part of my time and energy to trying to reverse it. I know now that any preemptive war we launch is wrong. This includes Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and all the countries we have threatened, or, in the case of Afghanistan, actually deployed troops and bombers to. Again, I can't claim wisdom in this regard. Any half-way intelligent person of any age can see the futility and the wrong-headedness of our military ventures.
Having been a child during World War 2, I must exclude that from my list of bad wars. Let the historians hash out whether we were justified in entering it -- I will always think we had to fight to eliminate the Nazis from our planet. And, speaking of WW2, I'd like to state how fortunate I've been to be an American. Despite all its flaws and mistakes, the fact is that we civilians here have never suffered as the people of other lands have. I never had to confront bombs destroying my home, my family or myself. Haven't we Americans been lucky, though? True, my beloved stepfather went off to Europe and didn't return -- not because he was killed but because the war did something to his head which prompted him to, well, not come back to my mother and me. A heartbreak, but not anywhere near the pain experienced by the children outside North America whose lives were destroyed by both sides of the conflict. Certainly, I can't erase Hiroshima and Nagasaki from my mind.
My belief that our invasion of Iraq was a horrendous misdeed led me to one of the most gratifying segments of my long life. Since 2003, I have devoted myself to organizing anti-war grandmothers to protest the war. Eventually, I put together Grandmothers Against the War, which began a vigil at Rockefeller Center on January 14, 2004, There were just two of us at first, but gradually we blossomed into a group of anywhere from 20 to 50 people standing on Fifth Avenue every Wednesday afternoon. We are by now something of a tourist attraction, which we don't mind a bit. People from all over the world see us and thereby learn that there is valid opposition to the war. Who can doubt grandmothers, after all? This was particularly important in the earlier years of the occupation when people from abroad often had the misconception that ALL Americans supported Bush's ill-advised attack.
We grannies then took more daring action. Eighteen of us, named the Granny Peace Brigade, decided to try and enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station. We were denied entrance, so exercised our constitutional right to non-violent dissent and refused to budge from the site. We were arrested and jailed and then put on trial for six days in criminal court for the ridiculous charge of blocking entrance to the recruitment center, something video footage of the event disproved.
Because of the notoriety we achieved through that incident, we began years of spectacular actions and travels in the U.S. and abroad to spread our message. This made for a fulfilling and adventurous old age for all us grannies, some in their late 80's and 90's. True, we've certainly had much excitement and gratification, but we feel great frustration and sadness, too, in that all our efforts as well as those of so many others have not yet brought America's grandchildren home from the war zones. We earnestly hope that President-elect Obama will rectify this. In that regard, please consider signing my Peace Grandmothers Petition to him requesting that we leave Iraq and Afghanistan now. All are invited to sign, not just grannies.
Peace Grandmothers Out of Iraq and Afghanistan
So, being a progressive grandmother has reaped many rewards in terms of allowing me to lead a productive and interesting life at an age when old women are stereotypically depicted as sitting in their rocking chairs knitting baby blankets and watching continuous soap operas. I tried to get this across in one of the many songs I've written about the grannies (hear it on YouTube -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXVAsHtitW0).
GRANNIES, LET'S UNITE
words and music by Joan Wile, ASCAP
I WAS SITTING AROUND WATCHING SOAPSJUST A USELESS OLD SAD SACKBUT THEN I HEARD THOSE REPUBLICAN DOPESSAY WE HAD TO BOMB IRAQ
WELL, I JUMPED UP RIGHT OUT OF MY SEATGOT MY BANNERS AND PEACE SIGNS OUT THEN I HURRIED DOWN TO THE STREET AND STARTED TO YELL AND SHOUT
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR TUSH
WE'VE GOT TO GO AFTER BUSHLET'S TORMENT THAT LYING JERKWIPE AWAY THAT REPULSIVE SMIRKOH, THEY GAVE US THE PATRIOT ACTWATCH OUR RIGHTS DRIBBLE DOWN THE TUBES SEE OUR CONSTITUTION ATTACKEDLET'S KEEP PESTERING THOSE ARROGANT BOOBS
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR BUTTS
FIGHT AGAINST THOSE MEDICARE CUTS
DEMONSTRATE AGAINST THE WAR
MAKE A STINK THEY CAN'T IGNORE
JUST FORGET YOUR RETIREMENT PURSUITS
AND GET OUT YOUR OLD MARCHING BOOTS
LET’S TELL CONDI, BUSH AND CHENEY
(speak) “YOUR POLICIES REALLY PAIN ME!”
GRANDMAS, GET OFFA YOUR FANNIES
WE NEED MORE FIGHTIN’ GRANNIES
LET’S SHOW ‘EM OUR GREAT GREY POWER
MAKE THOSE EVIL MONSTERS COWER
GRANDMAS, LET’S UNITE
WHILE WE ARE STILL UPRIGHT
LET’S PROTEST THAT PARASITE
WATCH OUT! WE’VE JUST BEGUN TO FIGHT!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
GRANDMOTHERS OF AMERICA, UNITE!
by Joan Wile, author
Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace (Citadel Press, May 2008)
How could our beloved Barack Obama do this to us? How could this prospective savior who promised peace turn around and promote war? We peace grannies supported him, rang doorbells for him, telephoned strangers for him, contributed small sums from our meager senior citizen fixed incomes to him, in great part because of his vow to end the war in Iraq.
Last night, in his address to Congress, he informed us that he would remove two-thirds of our troops from Iraq within 19 months and leave 50,000 vulnerable G.I.'s there. WHAT? 50,000 is not chopped liver! And, wouldn't a smaller force be in greater danger as those bent on destroying our American kids would be encouraged to attack more boldly a down-sized presence? No, no, no! Bring all our children and grandchildren home, and do it sooner, much sooner.
And, as if that weren't bad enough, President Obama has recently issued orders to send in 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan, a policy he restated in his speech. IS THIS FOR REAL? Our Peace President has bought the argument that we can defeat Al Quaeda and the Taliban if we flood Afghanistan with more troops? Surely, he must know in his heart of hearts that we would create an even greater quagmire there than we produced in Iraq, and that the only possible road to the defeat of terrorism is through diplomacy and peacetime assistance. The Soviets, the British learned all too well that YOU CAN'T WIN A WAR IN AFGHANISTAN. And, think of the resultant loss of life, limb and over-all destruction such an increase in the military would cause! The Obama we know and love would not want that on his conscience, would he? Doesn't he recognize that his legacy, if he goes through with this dangerous and foolhardy plan, will be Obama's Failed War in Afghanistan, as Bush is known for his Failed War in Iraq, and Johnson/Nixon are remembered for their Failed War in Vietnam? My God, Lyndon Johnson's catastrophe in Vietnam even managed to eclipse his truly valuable achievements in the civil rights movement.
We just can't let this happen. We peace grandmothers -- members of the Granny Peace Brigade, the Raging Grannies, Grandmothers for Peace International, and Grandmothers Against the War, to name a few -- will once again have to be in the forefront of the struggle to end our immoral and self-defeating attacks on other countries. We were among the early protesters of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, way before most of the U.S. finally woke up and saw the light. Some went to jail when 18 of us grannies tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square (NY City) recruitment center. Others have protested, marched, been arrested and gone to jail. Women in their 80's and 90's, no less. Women in wheelchairs, on crutches and walkers. Women who have fought for peace and justice all their lives, and now in what should be a time for rest and leisure, gird themselves once more for arduous battle.
So, I call upon all you dedicated and noble women to sign the Peace Grandmothers Petition to President Obama requesting that he withdraw ALL troops from Iraq AND Afghanistan NOW. One doesn't have to be a grandmother to sign -- friends and supporters are also asked to be signatories.
Here it is!
Peace Grandmothers Out of Iraq and Afghanistan
Let's deluge this plea with names and heartfelt comments about the futility of this proposed escalation and, hopefully, remind the President of who he is and what he should do to fulfill his enormous potential.
Barack, baby, listen to your grannies!
Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace (Citadel Press, May 2008)
How could our beloved Barack Obama do this to us? How could this prospective savior who promised peace turn around and promote war? We peace grannies supported him, rang doorbells for him, telephoned strangers for him, contributed small sums from our meager senior citizen fixed incomes to him, in great part because of his vow to end the war in Iraq.
Last night, in his address to Congress, he informed us that he would remove two-thirds of our troops from Iraq within 19 months and leave 50,000 vulnerable G.I.'s there. WHAT? 50,000 is not chopped liver! And, wouldn't a smaller force be in greater danger as those bent on destroying our American kids would be encouraged to attack more boldly a down-sized presence? No, no, no! Bring all our children and grandchildren home, and do it sooner, much sooner.
And, as if that weren't bad enough, President Obama has recently issued orders to send in 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan, a policy he restated in his speech. IS THIS FOR REAL? Our Peace President has bought the argument that we can defeat Al Quaeda and the Taliban if we flood Afghanistan with more troops? Surely, he must know in his heart of hearts that we would create an even greater quagmire there than we produced in Iraq, and that the only possible road to the defeat of terrorism is through diplomacy and peacetime assistance. The Soviets, the British learned all too well that YOU CAN'T WIN A WAR IN AFGHANISTAN. And, think of the resultant loss of life, limb and over-all destruction such an increase in the military would cause! The Obama we know and love would not want that on his conscience, would he? Doesn't he recognize that his legacy, if he goes through with this dangerous and foolhardy plan, will be Obama's Failed War in Afghanistan, as Bush is known for his Failed War in Iraq, and Johnson/Nixon are remembered for their Failed War in Vietnam? My God, Lyndon Johnson's catastrophe in Vietnam even managed to eclipse his truly valuable achievements in the civil rights movement.
We just can't let this happen. We peace grandmothers -- members of the Granny Peace Brigade, the Raging Grannies, Grandmothers for Peace International, and Grandmothers Against the War, to name a few -- will once again have to be in the forefront of the struggle to end our immoral and self-defeating attacks on other countries. We were among the early protesters of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, way before most of the U.S. finally woke up and saw the light. Some went to jail when 18 of us grannies tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square (NY City) recruitment center. Others have protested, marched, been arrested and gone to jail. Women in their 80's and 90's, no less. Women in wheelchairs, on crutches and walkers. Women who have fought for peace and justice all their lives, and now in what should be a time for rest and leisure, gird themselves once more for arduous battle.
So, I call upon all you dedicated and noble women to sign the Peace Grandmothers Petition to President Obama requesting that he withdraw ALL troops from Iraq AND Afghanistan NOW. One doesn't have to be a grandmother to sign -- friends and supporters are also asked to be signatories.
Here it is!
Peace Grandmothers Out of Iraq and Afghanistan
Let's deluge this plea with names and heartfelt comments about the futility of this proposed escalation and, hopefully, remind the President of who he is and what he should do to fulfill his enormous potential.
Barack, baby, listen to your grannies!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
60'S FREEDOM RIDER NOW PROTESTS WAR WITH THE GRANNY PEACE BRIGADE
We have many courageous and dedicated grandmothers in the Granny Peace Brigade. In the last few years, our grannies, some in their late 80s and 90s, have rallied, protested, been arrested and jailed, walked miles, traveled here and abroad, given speeches, sung, even done a chorus line dance in the middle of Broadway in an attempt to end the war in Iraq, and now, Afghanistan. Many of them have spent lifetimes fighting for peace and justice. Indeed, they are all certainly heroines, but one of the most gutsy grannies of all has to be Freedom Rider Joan Pleune, now 70 years old, and a grandmother of four and two-thirds.
Think about that. At the tender age of 22, in June 1961, she left the University of California at Berkeley and embarked on an extremely dangerous venture on behalf of the civil rights movement. Riding on integrated buses and trains throughout the racist South exposed one to the potential for beatings, jail and even death. Yet, Pleune, with her sister, Kathy, risked all that because of the strength of her principles. Honestly, how many of us then would have done the same?
Luckily, she was neither beaten nor killed, but she did spend a number of weeks in jail. After riding the rails from California to New Orleans, she took another train to Jackson, Mississippi, where she was arrested in the station waiting room. Pleune doesn't remember the details of the arrest but recalls that she wasn't frightened. "I don't know why I wasn't scared. I still don't know. I knew about the bus bombings in late May in Anniston, Alabama, and I should have been frightened, but somehow I wasn't."
Joan was sentenced to six months in prison and taken to the Hines County jail where she, very tanned at the time and thought to be African-American by the arresting authorities, was separated from her sister and herded with three black women into a windowless storeroom. Anticipating a long incarceration in this cramped and airless space, Joan finally felt the cold stab of fear. But, she was soon moved into a big cell with 41 other women. There was one toilet. Mattresses on the floor were the sleeping accommodations. They were actually ensconced in an area in Death Row, and could hear the doomed inmates from behind a wall. They attempted to communicate with them and even tried to share their food (an inedible blend of lima beans and lima beans) after they learned that Death Row prisoners were barely fed.
After being released early after six plus weeks, Joan returned to Berkeley and got a degree in psychology. She took California state tests for social worker and probation officer, and, though she scored second highest in the State, was unable to get employment. She assumes the State of Mississippi had a hand in sabotaging her job search. She then went to New York City and became a case worker until she began her family. She bore three children, the last at the relatively advanced age of 43 as a single mother. Beginning in the mid-1980's, Joan began work as a site advisor for adult literacy programs in three New York City public libraries, where she worked until she retired three years ago.
At that time, she learned on television of the Granny Peace Brigade action in which 18 women were arrested and jailed when they tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruitment center. Joan thought, "This is for me. This is how I'll spend my wind-up years." Appealing to her persistent youthful rebellious spirit, she was spurred to join the grannies and has been one of their most active and daring members ever since. Her protests have led her to more jailings and innumerable protests. Her most recent incident was in Washington DC where she was part of a group arrested for hanging five banners from the Hart Senate Office Building protesting the U.S. policies in Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza.
The story of the brave Freedom Riders lay somewhat dormant through the years until a book, Breach of Peace: Portraits of the 1961 Mississippi Freedom Riders, by Eric Etheridge, was published in 2007 and the vital history was resurrected for a new generation. Since the book's release, Joan and other Freedom Riders have participated in public forums about the landmark civil rights episode, and Smithsonian magazine printed a story in their February 2009 issue about the book featuring a dramatic photo of the current Joan. Pleune, a modest person who shies away from the limelight, nevertheless has found it exhilarating to be recognized as a significant player in such a crucial event in U.S. history.
When asked recently what compelled her to risk life and limb for the sake of integrating the South, Joan said, simply, "I couldn't not." This expression exemplifies the courageous and committed spirit of the Granny Peace Brigade. Granny bonnets off to Joan Pleune, Freedom Rider.
Think about that. At the tender age of 22, in June 1961, she left the University of California at Berkeley and embarked on an extremely dangerous venture on behalf of the civil rights movement. Riding on integrated buses and trains throughout the racist South exposed one to the potential for beatings, jail and even death. Yet, Pleune, with her sister, Kathy, risked all that because of the strength of her principles. Honestly, how many of us then would have done the same?
Luckily, she was neither beaten nor killed, but she did spend a number of weeks in jail. After riding the rails from California to New Orleans, she took another train to Jackson, Mississippi, where she was arrested in the station waiting room. Pleune doesn't remember the details of the arrest but recalls that she wasn't frightened. "I don't know why I wasn't scared. I still don't know. I knew about the bus bombings in late May in Anniston, Alabama, and I should have been frightened, but somehow I wasn't."
Joan was sentenced to six months in prison and taken to the Hines County jail where she, very tanned at the time and thought to be African-American by the arresting authorities, was separated from her sister and herded with three black women into a windowless storeroom. Anticipating a long incarceration in this cramped and airless space, Joan finally felt the cold stab of fear. But, she was soon moved into a big cell with 41 other women. There was one toilet. Mattresses on the floor were the sleeping accommodations. They were actually ensconced in an area in Death Row, and could hear the doomed inmates from behind a wall. They attempted to communicate with them and even tried to share their food (an inedible blend of lima beans and lima beans) after they learned that Death Row prisoners were barely fed.
After being released early after six plus weeks, Joan returned to Berkeley and got a degree in psychology. She took California state tests for social worker and probation officer, and, though she scored second highest in the State, was unable to get employment. She assumes the State of Mississippi had a hand in sabotaging her job search. She then went to New York City and became a case worker until she began her family. She bore three children, the last at the relatively advanced age of 43 as a single mother. Beginning in the mid-1980's, Joan began work as a site advisor for adult literacy programs in three New York City public libraries, where she worked until she retired three years ago.
At that time, she learned on television of the Granny Peace Brigade action in which 18 women were arrested and jailed when they tried to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruitment center. Joan thought, "This is for me. This is how I'll spend my wind-up years." Appealing to her persistent youthful rebellious spirit, she was spurred to join the grannies and has been one of their most active and daring members ever since. Her protests have led her to more jailings and innumerable protests. Her most recent incident was in Washington DC where she was part of a group arrested for hanging five banners from the Hart Senate Office Building protesting the U.S. policies in Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza.
The story of the brave Freedom Riders lay somewhat dormant through the years until a book, Breach of Peace: Portraits of the 1961 Mississippi Freedom Riders, by Eric Etheridge, was published in 2007 and the vital history was resurrected for a new generation. Since the book's release, Joan and other Freedom Riders have participated in public forums about the landmark civil rights episode, and Smithsonian magazine printed a story in their February 2009 issue about the book featuring a dramatic photo of the current Joan. Pleune, a modest person who shies away from the limelight, nevertheless has found it exhilarating to be recognized as a significant player in such a crucial event in U.S. history.
When asked recently what compelled her to risk life and limb for the sake of integrating the South, Joan said, simply, "I couldn't not." This expression exemplifies the courageous and committed spirit of the Granny Peace Brigade. Granny bonnets off to Joan Pleune, Freedom Rider.
Friday, January 16, 2009
GRANNIES' MESSAGE TO OBAMA FROM ROCKEFELLER CENTER
by Joan Wile, author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008 - on amazon.com)
A group of grandmothers and a claque of supporters stood for an hour in the bitter cold at Rockefeller Center in New York City on January 14 to commemorate the end of five years of their anti-war vigil. They were mostly unnoticed by the media, which was rife with the hot news about Bernie Madoff, the inauguration hoopla, Hillary Clinton's testimony before Congress, and, deservedly so, the Gaza crisis.
The women, some as old as 93, and some hanging on to walkers and canes, had a message for President-Elect Obama to dramatize the vigil anniversary. They were telling Mr. Obama that they enthusiastically support his presidency but want him to know they wish he'd bring the troops home from Iraq AND Afghanistan. They hoped to alert him to the fact that they would like him to consider reversing his stance on Afghanistan (which seems to favor an escalation of the war there) and bring ALL the troops home from both areas of conflict as soon as humanly possible. To emphasize their concerns, names of G.I.s and Iraqi and Afghan casualties were read out loud.
The old babes call themselves Grandmothers Against the War. Two women began the vigil on Fifth Avenue in front of Rockefeller Plaza on a freezing Jan. 14, 2004, with a healthy amount of trepidation. To be opposed to Bush's war at that time was definitely a minority position and one was possibly subject to some super patriot's verbal or even physical assault. Luckily, the women remained unscathed. Gradually, the vigil expanded as more and more people took up the anti-war cause, including a group of Veterans for Peace who have joined the grannies every week for almost the entire five years. Now, an average vigil has about 25 or 30 participants.
At first, the activists encountered some hostility from passers-by, but as the war progressed and more and more people became disenchanted with it, the grannies saw many thumbs up, often heard smatterings of applause, and once, in a burst of Latin enthusiasm a man from Italy kissed all 20-odd grandmothers on the cheek. Particularly supportive of the vigil all along have been tourists from all over the world, who since the beginning have made it clear that they despised the war (and, no surprise to learn, W himself).
As the weeks turned into months and the months into years, the vigil grandmothers determined that more dramatic action was required in order to get their message heard. Accordingly, they organized, along with members of Code Pink, Peace Action, the Raging Grannies, and others, the protest that was heard around the world overnight. On Oct. 17, 2005, 18 grannies attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station, were denied entrance and were arrested and jailed. They were put on trial for six days at Criminal Court, and, with the assistance of legendary civil liberties attorney, Norman Siegel, and his very able co-counsel, Earl Ward, were acquitted of blocking the entrance.
Using their 15 minutes of fame to best advantage, the jailbirds called themselves the Granny Peace Brigade and organized treks to Washington, stopping at cities along the way, to colleges, senior groups, etc. locally and even to Europe, giving speeches, performances and other actions designed to rally grass roots support to oppose the war.
Asked if she thought the grandmothers' efforts have been effective,
93-year-old Marie Runyon said: "You're damned right we've made an impact. In fact, we grannies have been at the forefront of the anti-war movement before hardly anybody else was doing anything about it. We're extremely worried about what kind of world we're leaving to our grandchildren, and that has given us tremendous motivation to do all we can to stop these insane wars."
President-Elect Obama, are you listening?
A group of grandmothers and a claque of supporters stood for an hour in the bitter cold at Rockefeller Center in New York City on January 14 to commemorate the end of five years of their anti-war vigil. They were mostly unnoticed by the media, which was rife with the hot news about Bernie Madoff, the inauguration hoopla, Hillary Clinton's testimony before Congress, and, deservedly so, the Gaza crisis.
The women, some as old as 93, and some hanging on to walkers and canes, had a message for President-Elect Obama to dramatize the vigil anniversary. They were telling Mr. Obama that they enthusiastically support his presidency but want him to know they wish he'd bring the troops home from Iraq AND Afghanistan. They hoped to alert him to the fact that they would like him to consider reversing his stance on Afghanistan (which seems to favor an escalation of the war there) and bring ALL the troops home from both areas of conflict as soon as humanly possible. To emphasize their concerns, names of G.I.s and Iraqi and Afghan casualties were read out loud.
The old babes call themselves Grandmothers Against the War. Two women began the vigil on Fifth Avenue in front of Rockefeller Plaza on a freezing Jan. 14, 2004, with a healthy amount of trepidation. To be opposed to Bush's war at that time was definitely a minority position and one was possibly subject to some super patriot's verbal or even physical assault. Luckily, the women remained unscathed. Gradually, the vigil expanded as more and more people took up the anti-war cause, including a group of Veterans for Peace who have joined the grannies every week for almost the entire five years. Now, an average vigil has about 25 or 30 participants.
At first, the activists encountered some hostility from passers-by, but as the war progressed and more and more people became disenchanted with it, the grannies saw many thumbs up, often heard smatterings of applause, and once, in a burst of Latin enthusiasm a man from Italy kissed all 20-odd grandmothers on the cheek. Particularly supportive of the vigil all along have been tourists from all over the world, who since the beginning have made it clear that they despised the war (and, no surprise to learn, W himself).
As the weeks turned into months and the months into years, the vigil grandmothers determined that more dramatic action was required in order to get their message heard. Accordingly, they organized, along with members of Code Pink, Peace Action, the Raging Grannies, and others, the protest that was heard around the world overnight. On Oct. 17, 2005, 18 grannies attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station, were denied entrance and were arrested and jailed. They were put on trial for six days at Criminal Court, and, with the assistance of legendary civil liberties attorney, Norman Siegel, and his very able co-counsel, Earl Ward, were acquitted of blocking the entrance.
Using their 15 minutes of fame to best advantage, the jailbirds called themselves the Granny Peace Brigade and organized treks to Washington, stopping at cities along the way, to colleges, senior groups, etc. locally and even to Europe, giving speeches, performances and other actions designed to rally grass roots support to oppose the war.
Asked if she thought the grandmothers' efforts have been effective,
93-year-old Marie Runyon said: "You're damned right we've made an impact. In fact, we grannies have been at the forefront of the anti-war movement before hardly anybody else was doing anything about it. We're extremely worried about what kind of world we're leaving to our grandchildren, and that has given us tremendous motivation to do all we can to stop these insane wars."
President-Elect Obama, are you listening?
Sunday, January 11, 2009
PREZ OBAMA: PLEASE BRING ALL TROOPS HOME, GRANNIES TO SAY AT VIGIL
PEACE GRANNIES TO COMMEMORATE FIVE YEARS OF
ROCKEFELLER CENTER VIGIL WITH APPEAL TO OBAMA
TO END WARS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN
Grandmothers Against the War, which began a Wednesday vigil at Rockefeller Center on Jan. 14, 2004, on the west side of Fifth Ave. between 49th and 50th Sts., will commemorate its fifth anniversary this coming Wednesday, Jan. 14, from 4:30-5:30 p.m., with a special vigil dedicated to President-Elect Obama and the grannies' request to him to bring the troops home from Iraq AND Afghanistan as soon as possible upon taking office.
"With the Gaza crisis currently taking precedence over all other international issues, we grandmothers are concerned that the Iraqi and Afghan conflicts are being ignored. We are urgently concerned about Gaza, of course, but do not want the public to lose sight of our vigil's focus of five years, Iraq, where people are still being killed and maimed, and the escalating crisis in Afghanistan," said Marie Runyon, one of the oldest grannies at 93.
"We hope to remind the President-Elect that he was supported by us principally because of his promise to bring the troops home quickly," said grandmother Nydia Leaf. As such the grannies will hold a 10-foot banner with a message to the President-Elect; well-known people will read the names of New York State G.I.s and Iraqi and Afghanistani civilian deaths during 2007, and the Raging Grannies will sing their unique songs of protest. All this will be accompanied by a color guard carried by a group of Veterans for Peace who have been standing with the grannies during the five years.
The Rockefeller Center vigil began with two women and gradually through the years expanded to its present-day average attendance of 25-40 people. Special occasions -- the vigil held for the 3,000th G.I. death announcement, and the one immediately following the arrest and jailing of 18 grandmothers (a related group known as the Granny Peace Brigade) who tried to enlist in the military -- have drawn as many as 100 people.
The fifth year vigil will be held despite any bad weather. The vigilers have never missed a single scheduled vigil no matter what the weather and will certainly be there this Wednesday. Please join us, journalists and camera people.
DATE: Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009
TIME: 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.
PLACE: west side of 5th Av. between 49 and 50 Sts.
ROCKEFELLER CENTER VIGIL WITH APPEAL TO OBAMA
TO END WARS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN
Grandmothers Against the War, which began a Wednesday vigil at Rockefeller Center on Jan. 14, 2004, on the west side of Fifth Ave. between 49th and 50th Sts., will commemorate its fifth anniversary this coming Wednesday, Jan. 14, from 4:30-5:30 p.m., with a special vigil dedicated to President-Elect Obama and the grannies' request to him to bring the troops home from Iraq AND Afghanistan as soon as possible upon taking office.
"With the Gaza crisis currently taking precedence over all other international issues, we grandmothers are concerned that the Iraqi and Afghan conflicts are being ignored. We are urgently concerned about Gaza, of course, but do not want the public to lose sight of our vigil's focus of five years, Iraq, where people are still being killed and maimed, and the escalating crisis in Afghanistan," said Marie Runyon, one of the oldest grannies at 93.
"We hope to remind the President-Elect that he was supported by us principally because of his promise to bring the troops home quickly," said grandmother Nydia Leaf. As such the grannies will hold a 10-foot banner with a message to the President-Elect; well-known people will read the names of New York State G.I.s and Iraqi and Afghanistani civilian deaths during 2007, and the Raging Grannies will sing their unique songs of protest. All this will be accompanied by a color guard carried by a group of Veterans for Peace who have been standing with the grannies during the five years.
The Rockefeller Center vigil began with two women and gradually through the years expanded to its present-day average attendance of 25-40 people. Special occasions -- the vigil held for the 3,000th G.I. death announcement, and the one immediately following the arrest and jailing of 18 grandmothers (a related group known as the Granny Peace Brigade) who tried to enlist in the military -- have drawn as many as 100 people.
The fifth year vigil will be held despite any bad weather. The vigilers have never missed a single scheduled vigil no matter what the weather and will certainly be there this Wednesday. Please join us, journalists and camera people.
DATE: Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009
TIME: 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.
PLACE: west side of 5th Av. between 49 and 50 Sts.
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