[Peace] Cities For Peace - On The Road From DC To NYC

Fri Feb 14 20:40:10 CST 2003

Hello from NYC!

Below is a story about my trip with the Cities for Peace Delegation. You
can also view it at http://www.ucimc.org/.  Thank you for your support for
this trip.

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Cities For Peace - On The Road From DC To NYC

<p>I am a city council member from Urbana, Illinois, an Indymedia 
activist, and this weekend I found my peeps!</p> 

<p>"My peeps" are councilmembers from Chicago, Seattle, Kalamazoo, 
Providence, Des Moines, Santa Fe and several dozen others from the 93 
cities, counties, and states (Maine and Hawaii!) who have passed anti-war 
resolutions.</p>

With the support of peace groups, we brought forward anti-war 
resolutions. We worked the phones, lined up our votes, battled with our 
mayors. Facing budget crises, we argued the local costs of war. We were 
slammed in the papers - called Alice in Wonderlands, delusional doves, 
ego-maniacs. And we won. It is lonely business - being progressive 
policymakers - even when we do win.

We are now traveling from D.C., where we lobbied Congress to restrain 
the warmongering, to New York City where we will join hundreds of 
thousands of anti-war protestors tomorrow morning. I write this from <a 
target="_blank" href="http://nyc.indymedia.org">NYC-IMC</a> where I 
received a warm reception from friends I've never met in the <a 
target="_blank" href="www.indymedia.org">Global Indymedia network</a>.

But before I go further, I must tell you what it feel like to be on the 
East coast, because I know you are wondering, and I am interested in 
telling. Yesterday I was adjacent from the Capitol which is surrounded by 
humvees equipped with surface to air missiles. Yesterday, during a coffee 
with Dick Durbin, he told us "I hate to tell you this, but you are not in 
a safe building right now." When I was in Urbana, it was easier for me to 
argue "they are just jerking our chains." "But what if they aren't 
lying?" I thought every time I heard sirens outside. I didn't sleep well 
in my hotel room on the eleventh room one block from the White House.

But I thought of the words of my Iraqi neighbor in Urbana: "my mother 
is in Baghdad. I can't tell you how frightened I am." Later in the day I 
learned about one of the Administration's proposals for a first strike - 
called "Operation Shock and Awe." This plan calls for 400-600 cruise 
missiles to saturate Baghdad, a city much like L.A. What would our 
country do if we were being forced to disarm at the same time we were 
threatened with saturation bombing? The U.S. wants to punish Iraq for the 
short range missiles that inspectors recently found. (Read somewhat 
hopeful <a target="_blank" href=" 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7728-2003Feb14.html">news 
about Hans Blixes recent report</a>).

Think about it. Can disarmament ever work under the threat of war?

This afternoon, I arrived in Penn Station in the heart of New York. As 
I made my way to take a final toilet stop on the train, I was ushered off 
the train into roaring sirens. "The fire department is asking people to 
leave the station." For a moment, I thought of Tokyo, wondered how long 
the gas would take to cripple me, gauged how many feet to the surface. I 
could hear the aspirations of my body as the rubble fell. My anxiety did 
not lift when I hit the street. Overhead, half a dozen helicopters loomed 
above the craziness of rush hour. There were two solid blocks of police 
cars. I asked a guy selling newspapers what was going on, he just shook 
his head "We are all afraid. I don't listen to the news anymore." (<a 
target="_blank" 
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7392-2003Feb14.html">More 
on fear</a>.

But wait. I don't want to bring you to NYC yet. Let's rewind back 
through the fear, back onto the train, back to D.C.

Two nights ago I got four hours of sleep rehearsing my arguments for 
the Senators. How can I cram six hours of public input into a two minute 
statement? What should I - what should Urbana - request of them? Senator 
Durbin voted against giving Bush war powers. Senator Fitzgerald visited 
Champaign last week and told the audience he supported making Bush go back 
to Congress to approve a war. I decided to thank them for taking these 
stands, tell them that Americans don't want this war, and provide the 
story of Urbana as an example - two townhall-like meetings, six hours of 
public input, 468/26 in support of the anti-war resolution, how our city 
and state needs the money that would pay for this war.

The next morning Joe Moore, Alderman from Chicago, eloquently made the 
same points. He then introduced me and Galen Gockel, Trustee from Oak 
Park, and we presented the Senators with our resolutions.

Fitzgerald responded: "I celebrate your push for peace. You are 
absolutely right to raise this issue in your town. When I was in 
Champaign, I became aware of the urgency for peace there." He went on 
"But, Saddam is a murderer. This war will be fast. We will prevail. It 
won't cost too much because once we take over, we will use the revenues 
from the oil reserves to rebuild the country. Then we will address North 
Korea." Utter cowboyism. As Jan Schakowsky, D-IL urged later in the day, 
"Yes, we DO need vaccines - to withstand this assault of testosterone 
poisoning!"

Durbin told us: "At this point, I believe this war is inevitable." My 
brain shouted - "He gave up! God dammit, why did he give up!" He went on 
to talk about how the war will not be fast nor easy and will set a bad 
precedent. He criticized Bush for destroying years of diplomatic work 
with North Korea.

After our breakfast, those of us from Illinois joined our sistren and 
breathren at the National Press Club where we were met by the AP, Reuters, 
Voice of America, CSPAN. Cities as small as Arcada, CA (150 people) to 
Chicago (millions) were represented. Our delegation, Cities for Peace, 
represented tens of millions of constituents. (<a target="_blank" 
href="http://www.citiesforpeace.org">Hear audio</a>.

After the orderly question and answer session at the Press Club, we hit 
the streets with our signs - one for each city - and approached the White 
House gates. We had contacted the President for a meeting. The only 
message we got back: "the President is out of town." Of course he is. And 
Saddam ain't in Baghdad either.

"Can you take these?" we asked the guards "They are resolutions from 
across the country asking Bush to let the inspections work." The guard, 
the police, had no idea what to do with us. When Joe told the Post 
reporter who he was, he asked Joe for photo ID because he couldn't 
understand why the Alderman from Chicago would be standing out in the cold 
knocking on the gates of the White House. It was a Michael Moore moment. 
(<a target="_blank" 
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5750-2003Feb13.html">photo 
and story</a>)

The cops decided not to do anything. They knew that if we actually 
were city council members, they would be in deep doo doo for roughing us 
up. (For an extensive investigate report on D.C. police brutality of 
protestors read <a target="_blank' 
href="http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/archives/cover/2003/cover0117.html">"Boss 
Hogtie" from Washington City Paper</a>).

<p>After our jaunt to the White House, I met more peeps: Barbara Lee, 
Dennis Kucinich, Jan Schakowsky, Jim McDermott, Sharon Brown, John Conyers 
- all members of the Progressive Caucus.</p>

The air was filled with mutual gratitude. We are a few people, divided 
by so many miles, observing each others work from afar, now in the same 
room.

Jim McDermott: "Without you we are dead. We are so glad to have you 
out there working with your constituents on this issue while we are here 
in the trenches of Congress."

Jan Schakowsky: "They are spinning the message hard: It's all out war 
or nothing. Bush has made a mess of this small planet. Thank you peace 
maker patriots for all that you do."

Dennis Kucinich: "Your presence here is representative of the unity for 
peace in your communities. You are the closest representatives to the 
people. You must stand up in your cities - gather people into ward 
meetings - help stop this call for war."

Who out there knows the work of the small but brave <a target="_blank" 
href="http://bernie.house.gov/pc/index.asp">Progressive Caucus</a>? They 
are the ones who mobilized 60 Democrats to vote against giving Bush war 
powers, amongst their other numerous acts for social justice.

When Progressives give up on the electoral process, or defacto reject 
anything capital D Demorat, they leave lots of Progressives in the cold. 
I have realized this myself as a council member. My work is two fold - 
work against the administration who subverts my efforts, and work against 
the anti-system biases of the progressive base of support I so badly need 
to do my work. Recently I was pointed this same dilemma borne by the 
radical Congressman, now retired, <a target="_blank" 
href="http://globetrotter.berkeley.edu/people/Dellums/dellums-con4.html">Ron 
Dellums</a>.

After being pumped with hope by Congressional Progressives, I called on 
Tim Johnson (R-IL). He kept one eye on me, one on the TV where a vote in 
the House was being called. He needed to make sure he made it back to the 
chambers to vote for a welfare bill that "will compel poor parents to work 
more, give states money to promote marriage and sexual abstinence, and 
continue a ban on cash assistance for many legal immigrants." (<a 
target="_blank' 
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5320-2003Feb13.html">read 
more</a>. As Americans rush to buy duct tape to protect them from chemical 
weapons attacks, the Republicans are taking advantage of the cover of a 
looming war to pass ruthless legislation.

I asked Tim a series of questions - Will a pre-emptive strike make us 
safer? Does he agree with plans to bomb Baghdad? His litany: "I don't 
have enough information do answer that. Only the President does. I trust 
his judgment." In response, I told him that some members of Congress had 
just filed a lawsuit contesting the Constitutionality of Congress 
abrogating their responsibility to decide whether to go to war. He 
shrugged, thanked me for coming, and rushed off to vote.

I lingered to appeal to his staff on two issues: 1) If Bush cuts taxes, 
we at the city level will have to raise taxes to fill the gap of services 
cut from the federal budget. This will hurt our ability to develop 
economically. 2) The Democrats budget includes billions in aid to the 
states. I urged Johnson's office to support state aid so that the state 
is not forced to reduce the portion of taxes given back to the city. They 
seemed more receptive to these messages.

So that was my day on Capitol Hill. I met will every one of my 
representatives and did a little direct action inbetween.

<p>Now I'm here in NYC, wondering where I am going to sleep tonight, 
drinking Tecate, and hoping the terrorists understand that hundreds of 
thousands of anti-war protestors will be in NYC tomorrow trying to make 
the world a better place.</p>

We councilmembers will be in City Hall first thing in the morning, 
trying to bolster the political will of alderfolk here in NYC who support 
the anti-war resolution before them, but are afraid New Yorkans will burn 
their houses down in they vote for it. I don't know what I would do if I 
were them. They hold in their hands the power to stop this war. Imagine 
the victim-city of terrorism passing a resolution against the war? Might 
as well declare the war is over.

<p>Stay tuned to <a href="http://nyc.indymedia.org">NY IMC</a>for 
tomorrow's news!</p>

<p>love,<br>
Danielle Chynoweth<br>
Urbana City Council Member</p>