Washington is on the march toward yet another war of aggression in the Middle East, this time targeting Syria. The ANSWER Coalition is calling on organizations and individuals to take to the streets in opposition to what would be a destructive and criminal war by the U.S. government.
See a list of demonstrations around the country and fill out our Event Listing form so we can help spread the word!
Despite the fact that an overwhelming majority of the American people are clearly opposed to U.S. intervention, the signs all point to war. In a recent Reuters poll, only 9 percent favored direct U.S. military intervention, and 89 percent opposed arming the Syrian opposition. But the tiny elite clique who really run the country are completely discounting the will of the people, making a mockery of their so-called “democracy.”
The U.S. 6th Fleet has deployed war ships to the eastern Mediterranean and is threatening to launch missile and air strikes against Syria. Not only are the White House and Pentagon openly threatening direct intervention, they are also moving to further arm the Syrian opposition. A U.S./NATO attack on Syria could well lead to a wider, regional war with grave and unpredictable consequences.
A staged provocation: a pretext for war
The pretext for attacking Syria is the allegation that the Syrian government used chemical weapons last week in the suburbs of the capital, Damascus, just after a UN team had arrived in the country to investigate an earlier alleged use of chemical weapons. President Obama declared over a year ago that the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government would cross a “red line,” triggering U.S. military action.
The idea that the Syrian government would launch a chemical weapons attack exactly at the moment when the UN team was in the country investigating chemical weapons defies all logic.
In a sign of their total disregard for the truth, the United States government has declared, in advance of any actual investigation, that the Syrian government is guilty of using chemical weapons. U.S. officials have stated that the United Nations weapons inspection team, which is today at the site near Damascus where hundreds of people died last week, is “too late.” In other words, the United States, along with Britain and France – the former colonizers of the region – have decided to use chemical weapons as an excuse to go to war.
We must remember the Iraq War in 2003, where “overwhelming evidence of weapons of mass destruction” was used as the pretext for a war that killed hundreds of thousands and tore Iraq apart. No such weapons were ever found.
If in fact chemical weapons were used in Syria last week, the far greater likelihood is that it was a staged provocation by the opposition to invite U.S./NATO intervention in order to save their weakening military position in the conflict. We have no reason to trust the U.S. government’s version of what happened. This is the same government that has routinely lied and deceived the American people on many issues, as was recently revealed by Edward Snowden’s leaks related to NSA spying.
U.S. foreign policy is not one of benign humanitarian concern, but one of Empire. Washington’s goal is control of the entire oil-rich and strategic Middle East region. To achieve this aim, U.S. leaders – Democrats and Republicans alike – have worked to destroy independent governments and popular movements in the region for more than six decades.
For the people of the United States, fighting against a U.S. intervention in Syria is of paramount importance to prevent the spread of war and destruction. The ANSWER Coalition is calling on all those opposed to this brutal war drive to take action against any U.S. attack on Syria! A broad coalition of organizations worked together in June and July 2013 for days of action opposing the U.S. role in Syria. We expect that the actions in the coming days and weeks will be of a similar unified character.
Don't see the event in your city listed? Fill out our Event Listing form so we can help spread the word!
ARIZONA
Tuscon, AZ
Friday, September 13
Gather at 5:00PM
at De Anza Park
Join the Facebook event
CALIFORNIA
Orange, CA
Friday, September 13
Gather at 5:00PM
across from South Coast Plaza, in front of Scott's Restaurant
Initiated by Americans Organized for Change and OC Peace Coalition
Contact 949-429-9877
FLORIDA
Coral Gables, FL
Thursday, September 12
Gather at 6:30PM
at 2925 Salzedo Street
Contact People's Opposition to War, Imperialism, and Racism
Join the Facebook event
Miami, FL
Saturday, September 14
Gather at 7:00PM
at Wynwood Art Walk,
corner of N.W. 2nd Ave & 23rd St
Join the Facebook event
ILLINOIS
Chicago, IL
Thursday, September 12
Gather at 5:00PM
at Michigan and Randolph
Contact ANSWER in Chicago at 773-463-0311 or [email protected]
Join the Facebook event
Chicago, IL
Friday, September 13
Gather at 5:30PM
at The Bean at Millenium Park
Join the Facebook event
MARYLAND
Baltimore, MD
Saturday, September 14
Gather at 3:00PM
at Broadway and Baltimore St. (Fell's Point)
Join the Facebook event
MINNESOTA
Minneapolis, MN
Saturday, September 14
Gather at 3:00PM
at Lake St. & Hiawatha Ave.
Initiated by Minnesota Peace Action Coalition
Contact 612-522-1861 or 612-827-5364
Join the Facebook event
NORTH CAROLINA
Asheville, NC
Thursday, September 12
Gather at 3:00PM
at Vance monument
Join the Facebook event
TENNESSEE
Murfreesboro, TN
Friday, September 13
Gather at 5:00PM
at Rutherford County Court House,
20 Public Square North
Contact [email protected]
~ INTERNATIONAL ~
