LaCrosse, WI
Here is a picture of "SANTA" working to bring PEACE for CHRISTmas. This is the 3rd Friday of December, 2008, at the foot of the Cass Street Bridge at approximately 5:30 pm. People of LaCrosse are supporting the WAR MORATORIUM and here is a perfect example of SANTA braving near zero tempuratures and 30 inches of snow to get the message across to the masses and our elected officials.
Aptos, CA
American Soldiers Memorial, December 2008. Photos taken in Aptos, CA at memorial for dead soldiers and the numbers of civilians killed for every American soldier killed. Uncle of Wanbli Isnala, Brett L. Lundstrom, USMC KIA Iraq, prays for the well being of families as we grieve for our children and youth and all children.
Santa Barbara, CA
The Santa Barbara event consisted of a mock cemetery of the US military teen dead, from the Iraq & Afghanistan conflicts. To date we have information on 304, 18 & 19 year old casualties from both conflicts. The "Tombstones" were set up by volunteers from the local Vets for Peace chapter and SBCC students. Visitors to the Beach Front were asked to place a placard of the photo and information of a teen casualty on the "Tombstones". Information about the cost of war and the immediate withdrawal of troops from both conflicts were given out. In addition a Petition by the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation was available to be signed. It is an appeal to President elect Obama to make a world free of Nuclear Weapons an urgent priority and to assure US Leadership to realize this goal. These petitions will be presented to President Obama on January 20, 2009. Anti-Nuclear Weapons information was also given out. This event was featured in the Santa Barbara Independant
New York City
A day or two after Iraqi journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi threw his shoes at Bush, this idea spread all over the internet. So on December 19, I headed down to my local PO in Manhattan and mailed this beat-up old shoe, along with a note taken directly from the words shouted by the journalist during his protest. It struck me that they apply to the Americans who have suffered in this unjust and unjustifiable war, as well as to the Iraqis.
Norwich, CT
We decided to hold our Iraq Moratorium the day after Christmas to remind those of the Prince of Peace's birthday wish. We also had a horrid snowstorm on the 19th and were concerned that where we vigil people often brake hard in their cars as they notice our presence and we just couldn't add to the dangers that the inclement weather presented. Either day we would have and did freeze as the temps were in the 20's and with the wind....
Once again we are reminded of all the harsh weather and circumstance that our soldiers are dealing with daily so 2 hours of freezing our collective butts off isn't all that difficult.
Peace in 2009, Peace to the World!
Cornwall, CT
It takes some genuinely serious weather for folks in Cornwall to cancel regularly scheduled activities and we didn't decide to cancel our Iraq Moratorium holiday observance until the snow on the afternoon of December 19th left us no choice. Plenty of the IM regulars broke their daily routines and took steps on their own. The ones I know about include: Glenn, who spent his evening writing to Obama about the need to end the war now; Marianne, who slogged to the library to post a cancellation sign. Jeanne, who lit a candle in remembrance of all who have died in the war our country started; Members of my family, who gathered at my logger son Jay's one-room house. His wife Rachel had been scheduled to play an Iraqi tune at the event. She broke out her fiddle anyhow and, draped in Moratorium ribbons, played just for us, and her and Jay's unborn child Darwin, plus another son, George, and his sweetie Megaly (who has donated a work to the upcoming Iraq Moratorium "Make Art, Not War" show at the Cornwall Public Library)
Los Angeles, CA
Menomonie, WI
Ten people attended the first Iraq Moratorium in Menomonie. We stood in the Veterans Memorial in downtown Menomonie, greeting the passing cars, and receiving waves and friendly honking from many. We also received the expected shouts from some passing cars that we should support our troops, which of course is exactly what we believe we were doing. Phone calls were made from the site to our representatives, and one of us took a spectacular fall on the ice, adding to the festivities. We are working on having a banner printed for January, and hope to have better attendance and organization for the next event.
Superior, WI
Grandmothers for Peace: Iraq Moratorium Stand for Peace 12-19-08, 4-5 pm. Only two brave grandmothers came out to stand for peace in Superior Wisconsin on Friday. Single digit temperatures and holiday busyness likely drove the turnout down, but a renewed effort is already underway to make January's event better attended.
Duluth, MN
It was a snowy, holiday-y day, so perhaps not so surprising, but still disappointing, that no one but me turned up for the December vigil in Duluth. But I still spent a half hour planting antiwar signs in the snow.
San Francisco, CA
Haight Ashbury Peace Vigil, in the Golden Gate Park Panhandle. Our December Peace Vigil was on one of the coldest nights of the year in San Francisco (the rest of the country may laugh, but for us mid to low 40's is cold). The cold weather, the holiday rush (and holiday parties) may have accounted for our low turnout (we counted eight, including two passers-by who joined in). Despite the low turnout, we still had new faces:
and we were still enthusiastic:
We were again happy to have support and encouragement from passing motorists, and pleasant conversations with cyclists and pedestrians stopped for the traffic light at our corner.More photos of this vigil and of previous vigils can be seen here
Eau Claire, WI
Iraq moratorium vigil 12/19/08, 4:00-6:00 PM corner of Hastings Way and Brackett Ave, Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We had 22 people standing in shin-deep snow to show opposition to the war. We had a meeting afterward to plan a "Peace Ball" in late Jan.
Fullerton and Huntington Beach, CA
Peace Caroling: 12/15/08 and 12/17/08, 7 p.m. At the residences of Congressman Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) and Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach.) These peace caroling events were organized by the Orange County and Long Beach chapters of Military Families Speak Out (MFSO),which is a national not-for-profit organization of people with loved ones in the military and their supporters, working to end the occupation of Iraq, bring the troops home, and to ensure our society takes care of them upon their return. Pat Alviso and Jeff Merrick, a wife-and-husband team co-leading MFSO in Orange County, did a great job of coordinating the events, wherein we sang traditional Christmas songs with lyrics adapted to the peace theme. While our local pro-war congressional representatives are home this winter recess, it's a prime opportunity for getting our message out and demanding accountability. This season is for giving, not for giving war hawks a break! Our creative, nonviolent protest in Huntington Beach, at Congressman Dana Rohrabacher's home, was covered by the Orange County Register. See the article and photographs here.
Most carols we sang were rewritten by Vern Nelson, a local progressive Democrat and universal single-payer health care leader. The lyrics are included in his blog posting here. Local peace activist with well-endowed vocal chords Sharon Tipton adapted A Few of My Favorite Things especially for Rep. Rohrabacher. It was a fun one! These songs can be performed by a makeshift peace choir--all you need is a good group of caring world citizens--on busy street corners, during "mall-walks," at community or holiday events, in conjunction with a regularly scheduled demonstration or vigil... Use your collective imagination for peace...year-round! More photos here.
Rice Lake, WI
Iraq Moratorium Standing for Peace. The People for Peace in Rice Lake fielded a dozen hardy anti-war enthusiasts this afternoon for the monthly observance of Iraq Moratorium Day. We waved at motorists and called our Congressman and Senators asking them to start spending our tax dollars on health care and not warfare. We mourned the loss of life in Iraq from the several thousand coalition military personnel, to the likely hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians. We prayed for peace this holy season, and we promised to be back in January.
Berkeley, CA
Gathering to protest the wars and occupations, 12/19/08, Corners of University Ave and Acton in Berkeley, CA. Small group today. We're primarily seniors, and health concerns keep us away from cold and rain. Even so, about 15 folks attended to sing, hold signs, and let the people who passed by in cars or walking know we can all say "no" to these illegal wars and occupations.
Milwaukee, WI
Literally a foot of snow fell on Milwaukee between midnight and noon on Iraq Moratorium 16, prompting some discussion about whether to cancel the usual 5 p.m. downtown vigil. But we learned from last year's Good Friday/Iraq Moratorium snowstorm that you can't stop this event even if you wanted to.
Not only did 18 people of all ages, from college students to seniors, make it, but some of the campus crowd even showed up with hot chocolate, as you'll see at right. There's talk of a barbecue grill and tailgate party next month. (Maybe Cheeseheads?) This wasn't the coldest vigil we've had, with temperatures in the 20s. and although traffic was much sparser than normal, drivers -- including a city Dept. of Public Works truck with a plow and a parking meter checker -- leaned on their horns to support the cause. The effort was a joint production of Peace Action-Wisconsin, UW-Miulwaukee Students for a Democratic Society, Iraq Moratorium-Wisconsin and Milwaukee Coalition for a Just Peace.
Madison, WI
After discovering that a Wisconsin manufacturer, Presto, makes weapons as well as Salad Shooters and Fry Daddies, two staffers from the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, went on an anti-shopping spree for Moratorium day. They visited stores selling Presto products and followed these directions, using a flyer available here: 1) pick up box to admire Presto “Fry Daddy” or “Salad Shooter”, 2) replace box on shelf, with flyer discreetly tucked underneath, 3) repeat. For the whole report on Presto's involvement in producing 40mm cannon rounds, see Steve Burns's story here. That's Burns pictured with the flyers he designed.
Pickings were slim at Walgreen's, their first stop, as you'll see in the video, but he did find one Presto product and took appropriate action. Big box stores are probably better targets.
