[Peace] Minutes, Jan 8th

[David Green]

AWARE Minutes

Corrections, additions, and nuance encouraged

January 8, 2006

Facilitator: Durl Kruse

Minutes: David Green

1. News of the Week (Carl Estabrook): Noam Chomsky
says that the genius of the Bush administration is
that it has even alienated Canada.

2. Introductions: Joe and Linda Weber, Jamie Storm,
Randall Cotton, May Xiong, Carl, Durl, David, Jan
Kruse, Janet Wesse, Carol McCusick, Don McClure, Doug
Clough, Lisa Chason, Mort Brussel, Karen Medina, Bob
Wahlfeldt, Bob Illyes, Susie Levy (a Champaign
resident who is a student at Wisconsin-Madison).

3. New ideas:

United for Peace and Justice, $50 dues approved, with
discussion of the top-down vs. democratic nature of
the coalition.

MLK: already approved and paid for full page ad for
events this weekend (Sunday evening at Krannert
Center, etc.)

IMC office space: Dave Johnson has offered us office
space near our usual meeting room for $60 per month,
including a phone line, which would save us $20 from
what we have been paying. We would have space to store
our supplies, a mailing address, etc. This idea met
with the approval of the group.

Haiti outreach working group, proposed at the last
meeting, will be a working group in progress in the
near future.

Carl proposed, per Cindy Sheahan’s suggestion (in
reference to Hilary Clinton), that we take protests to
legislators such as Tim Johnson, or to the
News-Gazette. It was also suggested that when the next
opportunity for a MoveOn vigil arises, that it be
sponsored by an AWARE activist, in order not to
exclude a firmer position for immediate withdrawal. 

It was also suggested that we pursue Lisa Chason’s
suggestion of the previous week to request documents
about FBI surveillance of AWARE, through FOIA, perhaps
with the help of the ACLU. It was suggested, with
discussion and debate, that the FBI does take AWARE
seriously as a threat not to national security, but to
the administration’s policies.

4. Working Groups

Finances: About $2,500

Main Event: Good turnout on good day, passed out 300
leaflets made for the occasion by Ricky, covered by
WICD but not played due to technical difficulties at
the station. It was suggested that we keep general
AWARE pamphlet at the demonstrations for those who
walk by and have a serious interest in our activities.
It was suggested that we may want to consider a
different venue for protests in the future, to reach
out to a different audience, whether back on Prospect
of elsewhere. 

AWARE Presents: no programs currently being planned,
but thinking about church related panel on morality of
war with Professor Robert McKim, something on Central
America and Haiti, and something involving Bob Naiman,
who is a local economist and graduate student. The
next working group meeting will be 1/23 at 7:00, the
Kruse’s house.

Urbana Council Resolution: Danielle Chynoweth will
speak at town meeting on 2/21 in favor. There is a
meeting scheduled with 3 of the 9 pastors at the
Vineyard regarding the war, in lieu of a presence
outside their church. Durl Kruse has aired a Public
Square Commentary on WILL in response to the negative
response from the pastor at St. John’s Lutheran. Both
Lynn Barnes and Heather Stevenson, Urbana City Council
members, are refusing to consider the antiwar
resolution—it was suggested that they would have to
respond to constituents’ concerns if expressed in
significant numbers.

Iraq Pack: Jamie Storm stressed the obstacles to
getting items of money safely and securely to those in
need, in places like Ramadi, where the al-Heeti family
has relatives and contacts. It was suggested by Karen
that Oxfam, Church World Service, and other groups may
provide a means for getting money, more important for
basic survival, then toys for children, given the dire
circumstances. Roaa al-Heeti may be able to assist us
more effectively as a consequence of her appointment
to the mosque board.

Counter-recruitment: Susie Levy suggested that this
was a good way to get college students interested in
antiwar activism, stressing it is their peers who are
dying. This has been effective somewhat in Madison,
although still too few students are involved. It was
suggested that we might be able to table inside or
outside of the Illini Union, or recruit in Allen Hall
with a little help from Laura Haber.

5. Past Week’s Event:

Durl and Bob W. attended the American Legion speaker,
a young soldier who lost an arm in Iraq. The soldier
spoke briefly and positively about the war, and
answered questions. The response focused on “support
for the troops.”

Finally, this meeting was held upstairs as an
experiment, but it was agreed that we would continue
to meet in the downstairs room in the coming weeks.



		
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