ISM: Support for Terrorism Reference

Here -- in a document regarding a July 2003 tour -- Al-Awda, the Palestinian Right to Return Coalition, Voices in the Wilderness, and the Middle East Children's Alliance describe themselves as Affiliates of the International Solidarity Movement (click here to see that specific text). The original article is/was available at the following link. In case that link has vanished, we have reproduced the text below. It was published in Left Turn, which describes itself as a "network of anti-capitalists."

WHEELS OF JUSTICE TOUR:
Nonviolent education and action against war and occupation in Iraq and Palestine
Date to be announced, Time to be announced
Various, Various

Members of Voices in the Wilderness, Al-Awda, the International Solidarity Movement, and Middle East Children's Alliance take to the road in an outrageously decorated full-size school bus for the Wheels of Justice Tour. Starting in mid-August 2003, this tour will canvass the western United Sates to challenge and educate Americans and Canadians on the occupation of Palestine and Iraq.

Having seen and lived with war, terror and occupation in Iraq and Palestine, participants in the Wheels of Justice offer first-hand experience irrespective of partisan politics and sound bite sloganeering. To build upon and reassert the massive domestic opposition to war against Iraq and occupation of the Palestinians, the Wheels of Justice Tour will travel all across the western United States for education, outreach, nonviolence/action training, active resistance, and community-building.

The Wheels of Justice Tour Platform:

• We call for adherence to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• Through education, outreach, nonviolent actions and personal witness, we stand in opposition to the violence and injustice of war and occupation.
• We recognize that to find peace, the root injustices must be sought, seen and directly dealt with.
• We seek and practice nonviolent alternatives to the current violence and advocate solutions to the roots of war in Iraq and Palestine/Israel and our own communities.
• Truth-Telling
  
  
  • To speak honestly about Palestine/Israel, one must recognize that the ongoing Palestine/Israel conflict springs from the displacement, apartheid and numerous injustices created by years of direct military occupation of the native Palestinians by the state of Israel; the violence will continue as long as it has the solid foundation of violent oppression and military occupation upon which to stand.
  • To speak honestly and openly about the war against and occupation of Iraq, one must recognize the ongoing legacy of U.S. involvement in Iraq. The current U.S. occupation of Iraq, the lifting of sanctions under U.S. military rule, and the continued local instability deny the Iraqi citizenry the very self-determination championed by the United States. The cultural, political and economic institutions of Iraq belong to the Iraqis, not to Washington; the hijacking of Iraq's culture and resources by a foreign power exacerbates and prolongs the consequences of the 13-year U.S.-led war, and the ordinary people of Iraq still have no self-governance.
  • You cannot have peace without justice, you cannot see justice without actively resisting injustice, and you can't nourish a nonviolent resistance without a supportive community. The consequences of these wars and occupations fall upon the shoulders of the poor and oppressed, the refugees and the marginalized, and those in our own communities whose needs are neglected by governments' costly pursuit of foreign wars; the human cost is paid for by the innocent and most vulnerable, here and abroad. To see an end to the violence and injustice of war and occupation, we must invest in justice and human rights for those living with and living under occupation and war.
• The Only Roadmap for Peace: Justice and Human Rights
  
  
  • As people of conscience working for peace, we see that the only roadmap for peace is justice and human rights. We call upon all parties involved to recognize and adhere to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and we call for nonviolent resistance to this violence of war, terror and occupation.
  • As much of this violence is supported by our tax dollars and by our elected officials, Americans bear a great responsibility. The people of the world know this, and U.S. government policy provokes rage and retaliation against Americans.
  • Further, draining our treasury on weapons and wars helps prolong and exacerbate our economic downfall and diverts resources greatly needed to build American schools and infrastructure and provide employment and healthcare to our own citizens. To break the cycle of violence we must change our roles in these conflicts; as individuals and as a nation, we must move from instigator to negotiator, from enabler to resister.
• Educational Focus:
  
  
  • Self-determination for both Iraqis and Palestinians versus occupation and colonization (drawing parallels to the dispossession and oppression of other peoples, including native Americans, African Americans, South African blacks under Apartheid, etc.)
  • Universal Human Rights and equality under the law
  • Effects of war and occupation on civilians in Palestine/Israel and Iraq, including house demolitions, armed conflict, apartheid laws, collective punishment, and degrading humanitarian conditions
  • US Tax payers' footing the bill and bearing the consequences of flawed US foreign policy in Iraq and Palestine/Israel.
• Action Focus:
  
  
  • Promote solidarity with Iraqis and Palestinians under war and occupation.
  • Cultivate, promote and take nonviolent direct action for peace and justice.
  • Build and strengthen networks of action groups in states visited.
  • Engage in advocacy with elected and appointed officials; challenge pro-war and pro-occupation officials in public.
  • Engage in mass media campaigns.
  • Raise material support for home rebuilding, refugee aid, and advocacy work.

The WHEELS OF JUSTICE bus tour starts in mid-August. Leaving from the Chicago area, we will head north and west, passing through and stopping in Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, Montana, Idaho, Washington...we start moving south when we hit the west coast; next, we start heading east from southern California through Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, the plains, Oklahoma, Texas; then northbound from Louisiana through Mississippi and Arkansas. This is a HUGE territory we wish to cover in 6 months, and we will not be able to visit everywhere in one itinerary. There is the possibility of doing simultaneous mini-tours to locations, which we'll have to bypass on the main route. Simon Harak and Ceylon Mooney are exploring a few different itinerary options.

Here are a list of activities we'd like to co-organize and participate in with host organizations and individuals:

• press conferences
• teach-ins, lectures, presentations, slide shows in public and private venues
• faith-related activities, religious services for justice and peace in Iraq and Palestine Israel
• movie screenings
• slide shows
• letter-writing, outreach and lobby training
• appearances at campaign rallies and events featuring elected and selected public officials
• events and public appearances of company executives (from boeing, caterpillar, etc) who indirectly or directly participate in war/occupation and related activities
• nonviolence and direct action training/orientation
• poetry events/open mike
• "bands against bombs" concerts and musical performances
• community-building events, like potlucks and strategizing local resistance and peacemaking efforts
• vigils, protests, and nonviolent actions at military facilities and war-related corporate locations (Boeing, Bechtel, Lockheed-Martin, Caterpillar, DynCorp, etc)
• using BIO DIESEL to fill up our school bus

Here is the travel route through December 23:

aug 13, 14 green bay, wi
aug 15 lacrosse, wi
aug 16-21 minnessota
aug 22-29 north dakota
aug 30-sept 5 south dakota
sept 6 drive
sept 7-12 nebraska
sept 13-21 colorado
sept 22-25 wyoming
sept 26-oct 3 montana
oct 4-6 spokane, washington
oct 7-18 more washington (lots of offers)
oct 19-27 oregon (may need more time and move into the idaho dates)
oct 28-nov 2 idaho
nov 3 drive
nov 4-9 utah
nov 10 drive
nov 11-16 upper nevada
nov 17-dec 7 california
dec 8 drive
dec 9-12 lower nevada, vegas, etc
dec 13-23 arizona

If you wish to participate or host the WHEELS OF JUSTICE tour, contact Ceylon Mooney of Voices in the Wilderness at ceylon@vitw.org and 917-567-5048.

WHERE: Nationwide Various Various, Various WHEN: Date to be announced Time to be announced