Indigo Girls tegen de oorlog

1. MOST IMPORTANTLY: Call and Fax your US Senators and Representatives DAILY and express your opposition to an invasion of Iraq. You can find out the names of your Members of Congress and their contact information at http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov or call the Capitol Switchboard at 800-839-5276 or 202-224-3121. Ask your representatives to sign the 'Peace Pledge' available at http://www.unitedforpeace.org. The President can be emailed at President@whitehouse.gov or called at (202) 456-1111. Call several times each day if possible.

2. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper saying why you oppose the war on Iraq. Your letter should be from one to three paragraphs long. Possible points to make include: the Administration has not presented an adequate justification for going to war; Iraq does not pose a clear and present danger to the US; and an invasion of Iraq would violate international law. You can find out where to send your letters by looking on the letters to the editor page of your local newspaper.

3. Email a friend and ask them to join you in opposing the war. Send this list of things you can do to stop the war to a friend along with a copy of Global Exchange's Top Ten Reasons Why the US Should Not Invade Iraq, available online at http://www.globalexchange.org. Direct your friend to the other online anti-war resources listed at the bottom of this page.

4. Distribute flyers about why people should stop this war before it starts. Good, heavily trafficked locations include bus stops, subway stations, grocery stores, college campuses, libraries, and churches, among other sites. For a sample flyer, go to http://www.unitedforpeace.org print a pre-made high quality window or call us at 415-255-7296.

5. Organize a weekly vigil against the war at the US federal building in your city, at the office of a Congressperson who supports the war, or at another public place. (If you live in or near Atlanta, GA, the organization WAND is holding rallies every Friday at 12Noon. Go to http://www.wand.org for more info).

6. Call a press conference where local community leaders, religious leaders, veterans, politicians, and others can speak out against the war. Once you have some community leaders who are willing to speak out against the war, determine the time and location of the press conference, send a press release to local media outlets, and then follow up with a phone call to tell editors and reporters what you're doing.

7. Educate yourself about Iraq and the US accusations against Saddam Hussein so you can discuss the issue with friends, family, and even strangers. We won't be able to stop this war if we can't convince people who don't agree with us to come over to our position. Websites that have good information include http://www.zmag.org, http://www.thenation.com, http://www.commondreams.org, http://www.alternet.org, http://www.pacificnews.org, and http://www.endthewar.org

8. Place a ''No War on Iraq'' banner in a prominent public place. Even if the banner is taken down within a few hours, people will see it while it's up, and they will realize that the opposition to this war is growing. You can hang banners from freeway overpasses and out the windows of buildings in downtown areas. It's easy to make a banner: just use paint or markers on a white sheet.

9. Connect with the local peace group in your community. They will undoubtedly have other ideas for how you can work to stop the war. Some peace groups that have chapters in many cities and towns include Peace Action, American Friends Service Committee and WAND (Women's Action for New Directions). You can also look at the events section on the United for Peace website, and see what groups are sponsoring events in your community. Or join Global Exchange's moderated email listserve by sending a message to nomoreinnocentvictims-on@globalexchange.org

STOP THE WAR!!!!!!!!!

Reasons to oppose the war on Iraq:

1. Innocent Iraqi people will be killed.

2. Iraq poses no military threat.

3. Iraq has no connection to 9/11.

4. An attack would be an unprovoked offensive and invasion; a violation of international law.

5. An attack would destabilize the region.

6. An attack would increase anti-American sentiment.

7. An attack would risk national security and actually endanger Americans.

8. A war risks the lives of U.S. service women and men (1/3 of Gulf veterans are disabled)

9. A "regime change" would only further U.S. interests and not represent the Iraqi people.

10. A "regime change" is an attempt to maintain and expand dominance in the region.

11. A U.S.-lead attack would enforce its status as a global superpower and lead to other invasions.

12. Support of the war would justify the U.S. government's propaganda campaign.

13. An undeclared war executed by the Presidency would violate the U.S. Constitution.

14. A war would maintain the ruthless sanctions on the Iraqi people.

15. A war would damage the civilian infrastructure resulting in civilian suffering and death.

16. A war would result in environmental destruction in the region.

17. A war would exploit racism in America and encourage acts of hate and violence.

18. War posturing would push for amassing more weapons of mass destruction.

19. A war serves to expand the "defense" industry and its profits at the cost of Americans.

20. The war, occupation and rebuilding will further deplete the scarce resources of the Iraqi people and divert resources from U.S. and other world citizens to repair the civil and environmental destruction of war.

THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW!!!!

IN PEACE -
AMY & EMILY
INDIGO GIRLS

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FOR MORE BACKGROUND INFORMATION OR MORE IDEAS ON HOW TO OPPOSE A WAR WITH IRAQ:

arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)