Dec. 1st Rosa Parks Anniversary National Day of Absence Against Racism, Poverty and War On Dec. 1st, 12 Noon at Downtown Federal Building in Los Angeles
Dec. 1st Rosa Parks Anniversary National Day of Absence Against Racism, Poverty and War On Dec. 1st, 12 Noon at Downtown Federal Building in Los Angeles
Shut Down the War! No Work, School or Shopping - Protests Around the Country (323) 936-7266/
FEMA Eviction Threat Begs Question:
How Do We Honor Rosa Parks?
Two days ago the Federal Emergency Management Agency said it would cease to pay for hotel rooms now housing most of the families devastated by hurricanes Katrina and Rita complaining of having already payed $274 million for the rooms.
What relevance does the amount they paid have on the fact that these families, through no fault of their own, will be homeless, and to add insult to injury, will be out on the streets during the holidays? What relevance does that money spent have on the fact that neither jobs nor real housing were created in the areas effected by the hurricanes to help the survivors get back on their feet and back to their land?
What relevance do those millions have to any fact other than that the amount pales in comparison to the over $200 Billion spent on the Iraq war so far. Those billions could be used to house not only the survivors of Katrina, but the homeless all across the country. It could be used to end the years of inequality due to racism. It could fix the broken health care system, feed the ever growing hungry children here and abroad.
All we need is a strong, united movement.
50 years ago, Rosa Parks Helped Start a Movement - We must re-start that Movement.
The 50th anniversary of Rosa Parks' arrest is much more than the anniversary of single person's actions. It is the anniversary of the opening of the mass Civil Rights movement and the struggle that brought Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.to prominence. The war in Iraq that has now destroyed the lives of more than 2000 U.S. soldiers and 50 times that number of Iraqis; along with Katrina; growing poverty and inequality; the drive to make the Supreme Court even more anti-woman and anti-civil rights; and Rosa Parks' death just weeks ago, have made this 50th anniversary of her arrest an even more serious and somber occasion to reflect on the need to restart the movement against poverty, racism and war.
Let's utilize this anniversary to move the movement forward. We urge you to join the more than 1,000 organizations that are also supporting and participating in the Dec.1st Rosa Parks Anniversary Nationwide Day of Absence Against Poverty, Racism and War. On that day, no school, no work, and no shopping--only protest marches, rallies and teach-ins. 50 years ago, Rosa Parks helped start a Movement. We must re-start that Movement. Part of the problem is that our movement is too fragmented. Surely, the memory of Rosa Parks should provide us with fresh inspiration to build the bridges between movements that would make all of us so much stronger. From the Sept. 24 antiwar protest to the Millions More Movement to the "World Can't Wait" day of protest, it is clear that the mass of the people are ready to end both the war in Iraq, and the war against so many of us here at home. On Dec. 1, people will march and/or rally in every region of the country including Los Angeles where we will gather at the Downtown Federal Building at 300 N Los Angeles St. And, in NYC, thousands will march and rally on Wall St because a relatively handful of people who either own, control or profit from the economy, must know that we consider the right to live free of war and the right to a job and housing, to be as much of a civil right as the right to sit in the front of the bus. It is time to declare that poor and working people will not sit in the back of the economic bus that only runs to make the rich richer. We will not ride in the back of a bus that wants to run over the rights of women, people of color, immigrants, youth, LGBT people and workers. We will not ride in the back of a bus that will cut health care, food and housing programs to pay for war and transfer more wealth to the rich. Let us signal a new resolve that we will not be pushed backward-- that we will march forward, and keep Dr. King's dream alive through courage, commitment and struggle, which is the legacy that Rosa Parks has left us.
Please add your or your organization's endorsement to this event by replying to this email. We are in great need of volunteers to make phone calls, poster and leaflet. Please call us at (323) 936-7266 if you have any available time to offer.
The Rosa Parks Anniversary National Day of Absence Against Poverty, Racism and War was initiated by over 1000 groups and leaders including:
Million Worker March Movement Troops Out Now Coalition Saladin Muhammed, Black Workers for Justice Chris Silver, Pres. Teamsters National Black Caucus Michigan Emergency Committee Against War & Injustice Brenda Stokely, former Pres. AFSCME 1707 co-convenor NYCLAW Baltimore NAACP Ramsey Clark Rev. Herbert Daughtery, House of the Lords Church Rev. Dr. Kwame O. Abayomi Trent Willis, Pres. ILWU Lo. 10 Charles Barron, NYC Council Guyanese-American Workers United Chuck Turner, Boston City Council Minister Don Muhammad, NOI Mosque No 11 Harlem Tenants Council Consuela Lee, Montgomery Bus Boycott Participant & Jazz Musician & Composer East Bay Homeless Union, Oakland Artists & Activists United for Peace Louisiana Peace Action Community So. Jersey Coalition for Peace & Justice NE Ohio Antiwar Coalition NY Committee to Free the Cuban 5 United American Indians of New England Queers for Peace & Justice FIST Steven Funk, GI resister Elena Everett, Chair NC Green Party Steve Gillis, Pres., USWA Lo. 8751 Boston School Bus Drivers Father Luis Barrios MLK Jr. Bolivarian Circle Mumia Abu Jamal Abayomi Azikiwe, Editor Pan-African News Wire Al-Awda Orlean Area Coalition for Peace & Justice So.Mississippi United for Peace BAYAN Virginia Anti-War Network Episcopal Peace Fellowship Puerto Rican Alliance of Los Angeles Fanmi Lavalas Asia Pacific Action Haiti Support Network High County Peace & Justice Minneapolis Anti-war Committee Arab American Civic Organization New College Alliance for Peace Eugene Craig, Steward SEIU Lo. 715 San Jose