> I'm not opposed to national demonstrations on anniversaries like the
> beginning of the Iraq War, but I agree with Chuck that the anti-war
> movement sorely needs something other than those ritual
> manifestations. More local protests are good and necessary, but what
> are the targets and means of the protests?
There are some promising developments that have come into my inbox this afternoon. Some of you may have heard about DAWN's call for a day of local protest in March. DAWN is an antiwar group in Washignton, DC. I just read an email on the anti-authoritarian anti-war network list about activists in Connecticut who want to organize people there to do similar actions like DAWN. I'm going to propose to that network that we organize a monthly day of direct action to speed up the frequency and visibility of such protests.
I suspect that many of you will agree that the next two months present a political window of opportunity for the anti-war and peace movements that can't be postponed until March. Now is the time to put visible pressure on the Republicans and Democrats on the war.
What are the targets? I was talking to a peace activist here in Kansas City last week. She mentioned that the local peace coalition here was talking about a protest in the suburbs next March. She said that the goal was to get 2500 people out for this protest. I suggested to her that people protest outside of one of the defense contractors here in Johnson County. My suggested target is Black and Veach, an engineering firm that has large Pentagon contracts and is located a stone's throw from Sprint's sprawling headquarters campus (with 16 parking garages). The anti-war movement has squandered too much on symbolic government targets in places like Washington. A protest of even 1000 people in Johnson County, KS outside of a defense contractor can make a big splash even if it is just a bunch of people standing around holding signs.
Everybody knows that I'm a big fan of direct action, but strategically speaking, even nonviolent or tame protests in places that normally don't have protests could have a big impact right now. Simply put, we need to make the opposition to the war more visible and vocal. Like those fake angry Republicans that were sent to Florida in 2000. You create the buzz.
Chuck