Updates on direct action in Olympia and Pittsburgh
Just to update on a few things that I have posted before -
1. I got an email from the Pittsburgh Organizing Group announcing that charges against 14 activists arrested there on March 2 have been dropped in exchange for community service. Yay! You can find out more on the action at the POG website for the action, called M2.
2. I got a press release from Caitlin Esworthy, who participated in the Port of Olympia and Port of Tacoma protests earlier this year. I’ve pasted it below.
The People’s Veto–US Military out of our Ports
Local activists opposed to military shipments prepare to gather at the Port of Grays Harbor. Reports indicate a shipment is bound for Iraq in coming weeks. Helicopters: Apache, Black Hawk KIOWA Hellfire models, roar over peaceful Aberdeen neighborhoods. What the people in Aberdeen have experienced in the last few days is just a little taste of what the people in Iraq have lived with daily for five years. These helicopters don’t just transport people, they transport materiele, hellfire missles. It’s an armed scout, armed with 50 caliber machine guns. In addition to the invasive military weaponry, local citizens have experienced restrictions to parking at their homes.
Citizens across the nation are infuriated with congressional failure to override the President’s veto of the supplemental funding for the Iraq war. May 1 marked the fifth anniversary of Bush’s Mission Accomplished claim. Violence in Iraq has escalated significantly since Bush implemented his troop surge. Casualties to Iraqis, to US soldiers have averaged 100 day.
Grass roots resistance to military shipments in local ports began in May 2006 in Olympia. In March of 2007 Olympia protesters were successful in closing the Olympia Port to military shipments planned for Iraq. Subsequently the Army elected to route the 4th Stryker brigade, second division, through the port of Tacoma. Close to 80 people were arrested committing non-violent civil disobedience at the Port, in opposition to the ongoing occupation in Iraq. Protesters strongly support US soldiers, and believe keeping them safe at home.
The Port Militarization Resistance intends to maintain a presence. Stay tuned.
Contact:
Molly Gibbs
Caitlin Esworthy
Kate Schiffman
Kyle T. Lucas
Zoltan Grossman
