<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
</head>
<body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class="">
I don’t see this as “hope.” I see it as “blame the anti-war movement” for not arousing more public concern over war.
<div class=""><br class="">
</div>
<div class="">One statement “The Anti-War Movement needs to care more for racial and economic injustice” is rather telling. Placing the focus on domestic issues, which are tied to our wars, and won’t be solved unless we end our wars.</div>
<div class=""><br class="">
</div>
<div class="">Most, like the authors of these articles, make no attempt to address the “root” of the problem which encompasses all of the injustice referred to, that is “our system of capitalism." “Reform” is not a solution. </div>
<div class=""><br class="">
</div>
<div class="">At least focus on war, if one really researches the subject, prevents any illusions that “elections” or “candidates” with our two party system, will bring about change. It educates one as to “why” we have wars, and it becomes inescapable, that
“imperialism” is the reason, and cannot be eradicated within a capitalistic system. </div>
<div class="">
<div class=""><br class="">
</div>
<div class=""><br class="">
<div>
<blockquote type="cite" class="">
<div class="">On Oct 9, 2017, at 09:11, David Johnson via Peace-discuss <<a href="mailto:peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net" class="">peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net</a>> wrote:</div>
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline">
<div class="">
<div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><span id="cid:image001.jpg@01D340EF.60591A90"><image001.jpg></span></span><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">The U.S. Is Bombing at Least Six Countries. How Can the Anti-War Movement Step Up?<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">A discussion of the future of the peace movement.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">October 5, 2017 | October Issue<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">
<hr size="2" width="100%" align="center" class="">
</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/community/profile/322171" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Phyllis Bennis</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Time for the Anti-War Movement to Throw Down for Racial and Economic Justice<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Why peace activists must look beyond our own movement.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_01_rd.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Share</span></a><a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Discussing%20the%20future%20of%20the%20peace%20movement%3A%20Time%20for%20Anti-War%20Movement%20to%20Throw%20Down%20for%20Racial%20%26%20Economic%20Justice%20http%3A//inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html%23ufd1" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class=""><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Tweet</span></a><a href="https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Finthesetimes.com%2Ffeatures%2F19108%2F41_10_ufd_01_rd.html&title=Time-for-the-Anti-War-Movement-to-Throw-Down-for-Racial-and-Economic-Justice" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Reddit</span></a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_01_rd.html&title=Time%20for%20the%20Anti-War%20Movement%20to%20Throw%20Down%20for%20Racial%20and%20Economic%20Justice" title="StumbleUpon" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">StumbleUpon</span></a><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Print</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">When the United States threatened to bomb Syria in 2013, an outpouring of public opposition helped stop the Obama administration from launching a new air war.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">But this success also transformed existing disagreement over the conflict among anti-war organizers into bitter debates. Activists disputed the nature of the Assad regime and Syria’s
domestic opposition forces; they diverged on what to do about ISIS, the neighboring countries and their militia proxies, and intervention by global powers. The intense intra-movement battle involved only a small cohort of people, largely on social media. But,
while both sides agreed on many things, the feud derailed the rise of a unified and internationalist anti-war movement—a movement that would focus on<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i class="">ending</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>the
Syrian wars, rather than urging victory for a preferred side.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Of course, the movement’s mission extends beyond Syria. Anyone monitoring U.S. wars today is whipsawed as military crises—along with U.S. drones, bombers, troops, weapons and more—bounce
from continent to continent, target to target. Iraq to Syria, North Korea to Yemen, Iran to Afghanistan, the Philippines to Somalia. Ending those lethal wars demands our urgent attention even as Charlottesville, Flint and Standing Rock continue to claim our
time, commitment and passion.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">An independent anti-war movement, especially a divided one, cannot take this on alone. Challenging the wars abroad, while at the same time addressing domestic crises, requires that
we focus on building a larger, broader people’s movement in which the struggle against war and militarism is inextricably linked to the fight against racism, for equality, for the Earth and for justice.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">During the George W. Bush years, the movement achieved significant victories, most notably the Feb. 15, 2003, global mobilization against the Iraq War. This may not have prevented
the U.S. invasion, but it created a model for what a truly international protest could look like, helped keep Bush from attacking Iran and later helped inspire the 2011 overthrow of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">When Barack Obama was elected, some activists believed that with a supposedly anti-war president, they could move on. In addition, the economic crisis meant that many more people
faced newly desperate circumstances, necessitating a greater focus on urgent domestic issues, including housing, jobs and healthcare.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">The movement strategized on how to respond. Should we focus on rebuilding an independent movement? Or prioritize building an anti-war component into other progressive movements?
Supporters of the first idea won the debate, and produced some powerful short-term mobilizations. But subsequent movement-building efforts failed to sufficiently respond to the new political conditions. People of color and (excepting veterans) younger people
were still underrepresented, and the movement still failed to sufficiently link militarism to the economic and racial justice campaigns on which younger activists had cut their political teeth.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">This is why we must build on the vision of Martin Luther King Jr., who, in his 1967 “Beyond Vietnam” speech, called for a unified movement against “the giant triplets of racism,
extreme materialism and militarism”—adding, as Dr. King surely would have, protection of the planet.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Yet, we still must figure out the dynamics of particular conflicts to determine how—and convince others why—to end specific wars. Today’s wars are vastly more complex than U.S. interventions
during the Cold War. In those years, many activists supported “the other side”—the National Liberation Front in Vietnam, the African National Congress in South Africa, the Sandinistas and the FMLN in Central America. It’s more difficult to ground our movements
in international solidarity when “the other side” is composed of fighters we don’t support, who hold anti-democratic, extremist religious, misogynist or other reactionary views. We still have progressive counterparts—the Iraqi oil workers union, some Syrian
opposition activists and more—but they’re not the ones engaged on the battlefield.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Here, we can learn from the strong anti-war movement following the 9/11 attacks. The two big coalitions—United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ) and ANSWER—divided over organizing strategy
and whether to criticize the Saddam Hussein government. The broader of the two, UFPJ—powerfully anti-war but willing to criticize Hussein—grew far more influential, partly because its more nuanced position encouraged engaging a wider range of domestic and
international organizations.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Today, we must ensure that opposing U.S. intervention in Syria does not blind us to Bashar al-Assad’s legacy of torture and collaboration with other U.S. wars, just as we have to
acknowledge that however progressive and indeed heroic the original protest movement of Syria’s Arab Spring, the majority of those now engaged in armed anti-regime fighting are not those progressive heroes. While activists facing brutal repression in Syria
or Libya or elsewhere may call for U.S. intervention, we must not uncritically accept that call.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Similarly, we have to recognize that Washington’s continued violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, requiring it to move toward full nuclear disarmament, is a major reason North
Korea is so determined to produce nuclear weapons of its own. At the same time, we must insist that Kim Jong-Un’s threats are unacceptable.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">To strengthen all our movements, we must also understand that militarism is a key cause of domestic crises: Military spending strips funds from the social safety net; excess Pentagon
equipment sent to local police departments militarizes our communities; Islamophobia rises in response to wars abroad; militarism’s outsized carbon footprint threatens us all. The Movement for Black Lives, the new Poor People’s Campaign, various environmental
and economic justice organizations, and many others already recognize this.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">We in the anti-war movement must do better in getting accessible information and analysis—on the human, environmental and economic costs of war and militarism, and the integral links
between war and racism—into the hands of today’s resistance. <o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin: 37.5pt 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/community/profile/322171" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Vijay Prashad</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></p>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">We Must Find Common Ground Without Giving In to Liberal Interventionists<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">An effective anti-war movement's first priority must be stopping U.S. imperialism.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http%3A//inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_02_rd.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Share</span></a><a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Discussing%20the%20future%20of%20the%20peace%20movement%3A%20We%20Must%20Find%20Common%20Ground%20w/out%20Giving%20In%20to%20Liberal%20Interventionists%20http%3A//inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html%23ufd2" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class=""><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Tweet</span></a><a href="https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Finthesetimes.com%2Ffeatures%2F19108%2F41_10_ufd_02_rd.html&title=We-Must-Find-Common-Ground-Without-Giving-In-to-Liberal-Interventionists" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Reddit</span></a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_02_rd.html&title=We%20Must%20Find%20Common%20Ground%20Without%20Giving%20In%20to%20Liberal%20Interventionists" title="StumbleUpon" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">StumbleUpon</span></a><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Print</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Phyllis writes with characteristic sense and sensitivity about the dilemmas of the U.S. anti-war movement. She is right that the current conjuncture is quite different than that
of the Cold War. Then, there was a clearer sense of international solidarity—in the U.S. wars and coups of that period, the U.S. Left could find progressive allies. No such easy solidarity is possible today. Comparing the two eras, there is a wide gulf between
Algeria’s FLN and al-Qaeda, between El Salvador’s FMLN and Mexican drug gangs. A great deal of confusion reigns.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">As Phyllis notes, the Western Left tore itself apart over Syria. One section sees the Assad government as the enemy, while another sees that government as the victim of imperialist
attack. But the vast bulk of Western leftists fall between these two poles, in part because they do not know how to understand the Syrian war. The imperialist media has confounded judgment, offering a theory of humanitarian intervention that clouds over previous
certainty about the wrongness of imperialist wars of aggression. It is this bewilderment and insecurity that has led to fratricidal debates.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">We saw evidence of the American anti-war movement’s weakness at the Women’s March, where few anti-war positions took center stage. There have been marches against the Muslim Ban
and for science, but no comparable march against U.S. bombings in Syria and Iraq, U.S. arms delivery to Saudi Arabia for its brutal war on Yemen, and U.S. escalation in Afghanistan. The liberal wing of the resistance to Trump is simply disoriented when it
comes to war, having been associated with the Democratic Party’s wars during the Obama years. It has surrendered to liberal interventionism and the war machine.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">If a serious anti-war movement is to be part of the new resistance to Trump, it would have to come from the Left. But this is not possible given that this Left is not only weak but
fractured. The divides are old—the American Left has been arguing about Cuba, for instance, since 1959, and some continue to believe the country’s government is a state capitalist system that should be removed. Infighting has prevented the American Left from
uniting around a clear anti-imperialist platform—one that centers the violence wrought by the U.S. government.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">But there ought to be agreement on some core issues that could unite the Left and rejuvenate the anti-war movement:<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• Reduction of the military budget.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• Freeze on U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia and Israel.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• Reduction of the U.S. military footprint through bases and naval expansion.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• Call for an investigation of civilian casualties by U.S. bombings and U.S.-backed militias from Afghanistan to Syria.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• End to the CIA secret arming of reactionary forces across the Third World.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">• Call for the conversion of military industrialism into a peace economy not rooted in arms sales.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Such a concrete platform would find broad agreement across the American Left. Unity in action should be possible if we are able to set aside—for now—the debates around Syria and
Venezuela. The American Left, weak beyond measure, can be strengthened by taking a strong class position against the warfare state—one that not only itches to sell arms and bomb countries abroad, but then turns these same weapons on its own people.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="margin: 37.5pt 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/community/profile/322171" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Ali Issa</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></p>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">The U.S. Anti-War Movement Must Reject a U.S.-Centric View of the World<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">We don't have to choose between U.S. empire and regional dictatorships—activists on the ground are fighting for a better alternative.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class=""><a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http%3A//inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_03_rd.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Share</span></a><a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Discussing%20the%20future%20of%20the%20peace%20movement%3A%20The%20U.S.%20Anti-War%20Movement%20Must%20Reject%20a%20U.S.-Centric%20View%20of%20the%20World%20http%3A//inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html%23ufd3" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class=""><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Tweet</span></a><a href="https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Finthesetimes.com%2Ffeatures%2F19108%2F41_10_ufd_03_rd.html&title=The-U.S.-Anti-War-Movement-Must-Reject-a-U.S.-Centric-View-of-the-World" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Reddit</span></a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://inthesetimes.com/features/41_10_ufd_03_rd.html&title=The%20U.S.%20Anti-War%20Movement%20Must%20Reject%20a%20U.S.-Centric%20View%20of%20the%20World" title="StumbleUpon" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">StumbleUpon</span></a><a href="http://inthesetimes.com/features/us_anti-war_movement_trump_syria.html" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;" class=""><span style="color: blue;" class="">Print</span></a><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Phyllis and Vijay’s reflections on how to rebuild the U.S. anti-war movement couldn’t come at a better time. In the wake of Trump’s recent announcement that he plans to send more
troops to Afghanistan, and his escalation of U.S. bombings in several other countries, one wonders: Is there an anti-war movement at all?<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Phyllis and Vijay rightly perceive a lack of large-scale political work against U.S. militarism. Both point to debates around Syria and other conflicts, and suggest areas of common
ground. Engaging these debates is essential.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">But I would like to offer another reason for the movement’s absence: Many in the anti-war Left fall prey to an inverted form of U.S. exceptionalism, in which U.S.-caused harm is
so central to our messaging, analysis and strategy that little room remains for the agency of people in other parts of the world, or the solutions they could offer.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Growing up in an Iraqi-American household in the 1990s—a period when military attacks and crippling sanctions on Iraq provided frequent reminders of U.S. cruelty—I’ve long been aware
of the harmful role the United States plays in the world. It wasn’t until 2014, however, that I discovered the work that Iraqi organizations on the ground were doing to respond to the skyrocketing number of birth defects linked to radiation from U.S. munitions
in the northern town of Hawija. I spoke to local leaders over Skype, and learned how, through fundraising, lobbying the Iraqi government and building global awareness, they were able to open a needed treatment clinic. They were also organizing against both
right-wing movements linked to ISIS and anti-woman laws backed by the neighboring government of Iran. This helped me understand that, while the liberation Iraqis were working toward depended on what we did here in the United States, we were also completing
a much broader picture together—one that involves building alternatives that could someday replace U.S. (and regional) hegemonies. This understanding honestly changed my life.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Going forward, deepening our internationalist engagements is necessary in opposing U.S.—indeed all—militarism. Though it takes effort, grounding strategic campaigns in the lived
experience of those on the front lines provides the accountability and inspiration we need. The Grassroots Global Justice Alliance (GGJ), in its opposition to U.S. support of repression abroad, highlights the legacy of Berta Cáceres, a remarkable indigenous
leader assassinated in the fallout from the U.S.-backed coup in Honduras eight years ago. GGJ has educated people in the United States on the Honduran indigenous land-protector movement of which Cáceres was part, pushed for Congress to suspend U.S. security
assistance to the Honduran military and police, and helped build in-person relationships between U.S. grassroots organizers and Honduran activists. Bringing this lesson to Syria, how very different would our relationship to that war be if our analysis began
with the popular 2011 movement for freedom and justice that was crushed by the Assad regime?<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">These are not easy questions, but as Vijay acknowledges, these debates aren’t new. Anti-war organizers have been navigating this terrain for decades. In 1982, for example, the U.S.-based
Campaign for Peace and Democracy was founded to support dissidents working for human rights in the Soviet Bloc.<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;" class="">Just as we need not choose between “domestic” and “global” concerns, but rather must see them as intertwined, we need not choose between a focus on U.S. empire and regional dictatorships,
as ultimately each relies on the other. The deeper question is: Can we step back from our insistence on a U.S. focus, allow others the spotlight and see an internationalist vision through?<o:p class=""></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">
<o:p class=""> </o:p></div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; float: none; display: inline !important;" class="">_______________________________________________</span><br style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; float: none; display: inline !important;" class="">Peace-discuss
mailing list</span><br style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">
<a href="mailto:Peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">Peace-discuss@lists.chambana.net</a><br style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">
<a href="https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace-discuss" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace-discuss</a></div>
</blockquote>
</div>
<br class="">
</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>