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.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
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.
Monday, December 8, 2008
VERY IMPORTANT PETITIONS TO OBAMA
In the last few days I've had the honor of forwarding two petitions -- both of supreme importance -- to my friends and supporters. Both petitions will ultimately, it is hoped, wind up with President-Elect Obama's transition team. One, requesting that there be a Secretary of the Arts, was initiated by a friend. The other, initiated by me, is on behalf of peace grandmothers who want to end the war in Iraq ASAP and want Obama to reconsider his plan to elevate the war in Afghanistan.
Your signatures would be much appreciatd on both. Here they are:
We endorse the Secretary of the Arts Petition to President-Elect Barack Obama.
Read the Secretary of the Arts Petition.
We endorse the PEACE GRANDMOTHERS PETITION TO PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA
Your signatures would be much appreciatd on both. Here they are:
We endorse the Secretary of the Arts Petition to President-Elect Barack Obama.
Read the Secretary of the Arts Petition.
We endorse the PEACE GRANDMOTHERS PETITION TO PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA
Thursday, November 27, 2008
ON FASCISM
A guest anti-war granny, Edith Bell of the Pittsburgh Raging Grannies, has sent me a copy of her letter published in the Post Gazette. I think it's most important. Here it is:
"President Bush states, he will not close Guantanamo Bay prison (PG 10-26-08) Guantanamo is an interrogation camp. Interrogation camps are illegal according to the Geneva Conventions, revised in 1949 in response to Nazi practices in World War II. Our government unilaterally decided to disregard the Geneva Conventions. Furthermore the 8th Amendment states, “ Excessive bail shall not be required …nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.” There are reports on what has occurred at Guantanamo Bay prison, incidents resembling Abu Graib. Somebody asked me recently how Hitler’s rise in civilized Germany was possible. Since I was there, I assured him, that it sneaked up on us gradually. First the fear of external and internal threat was invoked. Secret prisons and a paramilitary force were established. Ordinary citizens were spied upon, and citizens’ groups were infiltrated. People were arbitrarily detained and released. The press was restricted. A few other countries were attacked. Criticism was regarded as treason or espionage. Economically Germany was in dire straits, trying to provide for “guns and butter”. Finally the rules of law were subverted and there was a dictatorship. No one dared to speak out, and a neighbor could no longer be trusted. Evil happens when enough good people do nothing Let’s make sure that it can’t happen again."
"President Bush states, he will not close Guantanamo Bay prison (PG 10-26-08) Guantanamo is an interrogation camp. Interrogation camps are illegal according to the Geneva Conventions, revised in 1949 in response to Nazi practices in World War II. Our government unilaterally decided to disregard the Geneva Conventions. Furthermore the 8th Amendment states, “ Excessive bail shall not be required …nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.” There are reports on what has occurred at Guantanamo Bay prison, incidents resembling Abu Graib. Somebody asked me recently how Hitler’s rise in civilized Germany was possible. Since I was there, I assured him, that it sneaked up on us gradually. First the fear of external and internal threat was invoked. Secret prisons and a paramilitary force were established. Ordinary citizens were spied upon, and citizens’ groups were infiltrated. People were arbitrarily detained and released. The press was restricted. A few other countries were attacked. Criticism was regarded as treason or espionage. Economically Germany was in dire straits, trying to provide for “guns and butter”. Finally the rules of law were subverted and there was a dictatorship. No one dared to speak out, and a neighbor could no longer be trusted. Evil happens when enough good people do nothing Let’s make sure that it can’t happen again."
Sunday, November 23, 2008
DON'T HEED-A THE MED-IA
a poem by Joan Wile
author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008)
The media
they feedya
sensation not sense
you, public, so dense,
allow them to leadya
They milk the inane
until we're insane
They fixate on Palin
day out and day in
until we're in pain
They're hung up on Hill
obsessed about Bill
They force feed us Brittney
Expose ev'ry titty
until we feel ill
Why can't they relate
succinctly and straight
the substantive news
devoid of their views
Let US calculate
our eventual fate
author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008)
The media
they feedya
sensation not sense
you, public, so dense,
allow them to leadya
They milk the inane
until we're insane
They fixate on Palin
day out and day in
until we're in pain
They're hung up on Hill
obsessed about Bill
They force feed us Brittney
Expose ev'ry titty
until we feel ill
Why can't they relate
succinctly and straight
the substantive news
devoid of their views
Let US calculate
our eventual fate
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
PEACE GRANNIES CONTINUE THE GOOD FIGHT
Granny Peace Brigade Holds Teach-In To Oppose
Militarization By U.S. Of Latin America And The Caribbean
by Joan Wile,
author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008)
The legendary grannies of the New York Granny Peace Brigade, who were arrested, jailed and put on trial for six days in 2005 when we attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station, are still out there fighting U.S. preemptive war and militarization of foreign nations. Though most, if not all, of us are jubilant about Barack Obama's historic election, nevertheless we feisty grandmothers held a teach-in days after his victory to alert the public and, hopefully, the President-elect to our concerns about the plethora of U.S. military installations and operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The teach-in, held Sunday, Nov। 9, at Manhattan's Church of the Ascension, was the third in a series of teach-ins sponsored by the grandmothers to oppose the more than 1,000 military bases installed in every continent except Antarctica. The first teach-in emphasized Guantanamo, the second stressed AFRICOM, the new U.S. military command for Africa. In this latest forum, moderated by Greg Wilpert, sociologist and author of Changing Venezuela by Taking Power and editor of Venezuelanalysis.com, the 19 countries of South and Central America as well as the 13 countries of the Caribbean were the focus of discussion. To our knowledge, there are a few major bases in Latin America and the Caribbean -- Guantanamo in Cuba, of course, Manta in Ecuador, Soto Cano in Honduras and several in Columbia, as well as a number of smaller installations, termed "lily pads," used for various military purposes, but often disguised as centers for drug interdiction.
Maria Fernanda Espinosa, Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the United Nations and former Minister of Foreign Affairs for Ecuador, a petite young woman (40ish is young to us grannies, at any rate), spoke of Ecuador's refusal to renew its contract with the U.S. for its use of the military base at Manta. According to Ambassador Espinosa, when she was foreign minister she had three meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, who applied tremendous pressure upon the government of Ecuador to sign on with the U.S. for another ten years, but Ecuador stuck by its guns -- or rather against the guns and said "No."
The Ambassador said she was hopeful that Barack Obama would make policy changes favorable to Latin America and the Caribbean that would preclude United States militarization and recognize the sovereignty of the countries within. Ecuador has written a new constitution articulating that it is a country of peace, and prohibits military bases for any purpose. It is the only country other than Japan to specify peace in its constitution, and she expressed a wish that the document would become a model for other nations.
Espinosa also revealed that there are now high-level meetings at the U.N. discussing preemptive war and the concept of protection by one nation for others. She urged us to pay attention to what's going on in the U.N. in those respects, and we sensed an optimism in her remarks that perhaps we can anticipate welcome strides forward.
Following the impressive Ambassador, we heard from Greg Grandin, professor of History at New York University and an award-winning author of several books, most recently Empire's Workshop: Latin America, the United States, and the Rise of the New Imperialism (Metropolitan, 2006). Professor Grandin discussed the United States attempts to curb the growing democratization of Latin America by its imposition of military control. He declared that the Bush policy has been a "disaster" for Latin America, and cited, for example, how its giving resources and support to Columbia to militarize (the Columbia Plan), ostensibly to fight drug trafficking, has in actuality allowed the U.S. to further its manipulation of Columbia into its militaristic web. In his view, it has been a failure in its intended aim to fight drugs but has succeeded all too well in gaining U.S. military domination of the area. He warned that the U.S. is seeking to impose the Columbia Plan across Latin America and in Mexico.
Professor Grandin said that what really matters in stopping United States domination of our neighbors to the south and in the Caribbean is to repudiate preventive war and to recognize their sovereignty. Latin America, he ventured, will be a test case for how substantial the break from past policy will be under an Obama administration.
And, finally, the grannies were pleased to attend the words of our remarkable buddy, Army Colonel (retired) Ann Wright, renowned for resigning her diplomatic post the night before the United States invaded Iraq, and author of an important new book, Dissent: Voices of Conscience (2008). Col. Wright, a dedicated anti-war protester who has spent considerable time in jail for her patriotic efforts, spoke of her shock when she attempted to enter Canada recently and was forbidden entry. The authorities knew of her arrests, such information available only through FBI files, which are to itemize only serious offenders and definitely not Bush protesters. Col. Wright described the incident as "creepy" and warned that undoubtedly access into Mexico will be subject to the same illegal process. She advised us to urge President-Elect Obama to stop this subversion of our rights.
The Colonel referred to the Axis of Evil -- which, according to Bush, is composed of Iraq, North Korea and Iran. However, she reminded us of how the term was implicit earlier under the Reagan administration when the U.S. demonized the Cuban revolution, the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua and, that in Granada. She believes the new administration has the potential for a great presidency, but exhorted us to tell Obama about our opposition to the past and current United States' dangerous policies toward Latin America and the Caribbean.
There followed a most informative question and answer forum ending with the query, "What can we here in New York do about this urgent problem of U.S. militarization of our Latin American and Caribbean neighbors?" Ann Wright stated that our teach-in was a good first step, that educating people was vital. She encouraged participation in the upcoming protest at Ft. Benning against the School of the Americas. It was suggested that we entreat the authorities to bring the national guard home from Iraq, that we march with the Veterans for Peace in the Veterans Day parade. Most of all, we should target Congress. Some of our leading Democrat policymakers, as, for instance, Sen. Christopher Dodd, voted for the Columbia Plan. We must re-educate him and others.
The Granny Peace Brigade, for its part, will keep on keeping on with its teach-ins, its counter-recruitment actions and its various other activities toward its fundamental purpose of ending the Iraq war and preventing other preemptive invasions.
Militarization By U.S. Of Latin America And The Caribbean
by Joan Wile,
author, "Grandmothers Against the War: Getting Off Our Fannies and Standing Up for Peace" (Citadel Press, May 2008)
The legendary grannies of the New York Granny Peace Brigade, who were arrested, jailed and put on trial for six days in 2005 when we attempted to enlist in the military at the Times Square recruiting station, are still out there fighting U.S. preemptive war and militarization of foreign nations. Though most, if not all, of us are jubilant about Barack Obama's historic election, nevertheless we feisty grandmothers held a teach-in days after his victory to alert the public and, hopefully, the President-elect to our concerns about the plethora of U.S. military installations and operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The teach-in, held Sunday, Nov। 9, at Manhattan's Church of the Ascension, was the third in a series of teach-ins sponsored by the grandmothers to oppose the more than 1,000 military bases installed in every continent except Antarctica. The first teach-in emphasized Guantanamo, the second stressed AFRICOM, the new U.S. military command for Africa. In this latest forum, moderated by Greg Wilpert, sociologist and author of Changing Venezuela by Taking Power and editor of Venezuelanalysis.com, the 19 countries of South and Central America as well as the 13 countries of the Caribbean were the focus of discussion. To our knowledge, there are a few major bases in Latin America and the Caribbean -- Guantanamo in Cuba, of course, Manta in Ecuador, Soto Cano in Honduras and several in Columbia, as well as a number of smaller installations, termed "lily pads," used for various military purposes, but often disguised as centers for drug interdiction.
Maria Fernanda Espinosa, Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the United Nations and former Minister of Foreign Affairs for Ecuador, a petite young woman (40ish is young to us grannies, at any rate), spoke of Ecuador's refusal to renew its contract with the U.S. for its use of the military base at Manta. According to Ambassador Espinosa, when she was foreign minister she had three meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, who applied tremendous pressure upon the government of Ecuador to sign on with the U.S. for another ten years, but Ecuador stuck by its guns -- or rather against the guns and said "No."
The Ambassador said she was hopeful that Barack Obama would make policy changes favorable to Latin America and the Caribbean that would preclude United States militarization and recognize the sovereignty of the countries within. Ecuador has written a new constitution articulating that it is a country of peace, and prohibits military bases for any purpose. It is the only country other than Japan to specify peace in its constitution, and she expressed a wish that the document would become a model for other nations.
Espinosa also revealed that there are now high-level meetings at the U.N. discussing preemptive war and the concept of protection by one nation for others. She urged us to pay attention to what's going on in the U.N. in those respects, and we sensed an optimism in her remarks that perhaps we can anticipate welcome strides forward.
Following the impressive Ambassador, we heard from Greg Grandin, professor of History at New York University and an award-winning author of several books, most recently Empire's Workshop: Latin America, the United States, and the Rise of the New Imperialism (Metropolitan, 2006). Professor Grandin discussed the United States attempts to curb the growing democratization of Latin America by its imposition of military control. He declared that the Bush policy has been a "disaster" for Latin America, and cited, for example, how its giving resources and support to Columbia to militarize (the Columbia Plan), ostensibly to fight drug trafficking, has in actuality allowed the U.S. to further its manipulation of Columbia into its militaristic web. In his view, it has been a failure in its intended aim to fight drugs but has succeeded all too well in gaining U.S. military domination of the area. He warned that the U.S. is seeking to impose the Columbia Plan across Latin America and in Mexico.
Professor Grandin said that what really matters in stopping United States domination of our neighbors to the south and in the Caribbean is to repudiate preventive war and to recognize their sovereignty. Latin America, he ventured, will be a test case for how substantial the break from past policy will be under an Obama administration.
And, finally, the grannies were pleased to attend the words of our remarkable buddy, Army Colonel (retired) Ann Wright, renowned for resigning her diplomatic post the night before the United States invaded Iraq, and author of an important new book, Dissent: Voices of Conscience (2008). Col. Wright, a dedicated anti-war protester who has spent considerable time in jail for her patriotic efforts, spoke of her shock when she attempted to enter Canada recently and was forbidden entry. The authorities knew of her arrests, such information available only through FBI files, which are to itemize only serious offenders and definitely not Bush protesters. Col. Wright described the incident as "creepy" and warned that undoubtedly access into Mexico will be subject to the same illegal process. She advised us to urge President-Elect Obama to stop this subversion of our rights.
The Colonel referred to the Axis of Evil -- which, according to Bush, is composed of Iraq, North Korea and Iran. However, she reminded us of how the term was implicit earlier under the Reagan administration when the U.S. demonized the Cuban revolution, the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua and, that in Granada. She believes the new administration has the potential for a great presidency, but exhorted us to tell Obama about our opposition to the past and current United States' dangerous policies toward Latin America and the Caribbean.
There followed a most informative question and answer forum ending with the query, "What can we here in New York do about this urgent problem of U.S. militarization of our Latin American and Caribbean neighbors?" Ann Wright stated that our teach-in was a good first step, that educating people was vital. She encouraged participation in the upcoming protest at Ft. Benning against the School of the Americas. It was suggested that we entreat the authorities to bring the national guard home from Iraq, that we march with the Veterans for Peace in the Veterans Day parade. Most of all, we should target Congress. Some of our leading Democrat policymakers, as, for instance, Sen. Christopher Dodd, voted for the Columbia Plan. We must re-educate him and others.
The Granny Peace Brigade, for its part, will keep on keeping on with its teach-ins, its counter-recruitment actions and its various other activities toward its fundamental purpose of ending the Iraq war and preventing other preemptive invasions.
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