From: "Richmond, Rick" <rrichmon@uwec.edu> Date: Fri, 9 Mar 2007 11:54:23 -0600 Subject: A Message From Howard Zinn: Support UFPJ and Help Build the Antiwar Movement Message-ID: <7A17A445D0203848B157E8D70D1AC77E37691816CC@CHERRYPEPSI.uwec.edu>
March 9, 2007
Boston, MA
Dear Friends and Colleagues:
January 27 saw a massive antiwar demonstration in Washington, D.C. Two days
later, more than one thousand of the demonstrators gathered on Capitol Hil
l to lobby members of Congress. These events generated important momentum -
which we must build on - in the ongoing effort to pressure Washington to e
nd its war and occupation in Iraq, and to prevent any aggression toward Ira
n.
It is for this reason that I am asking you to support United for Peace and
Justice (UFPJ), the antiwar coalition responsible for organizing the demons
tration and the lobbying - among countless other pro-peace activities. In D
ecember, faculty members at Vassar College launched a national appeal (see
below) to financially support UFPJ and its invaluable work to put an end to
U.S. militarism in Iraq and the larger region. Since then more than 100 ac
ademics from across the country have joined their colleagues at Vassar by p
ledging financial support and adding their names to the appeal.
As we near the fourth anniversary of the launching of the U.S. invasion of
Iraq, I'd really appreciate it if you would consider joining me and backing
this initiative, and forwarding this email to academic friends and colleag
ues throughout the United States and urging them to do the same. The antiwa
r movement needs your active and sustained support more than ever.
Sincerely,
Howard Zinn
Professor Emeritus
Department of History
Boston University
-------------------
Letter from Vassar College antiwar academics:
December 12, 2006
Dear Fellow Antiwar Academic:
By all accounts, November's Congressional elections were a referendum on th
e war. The results were crystal clear: voters overwhelmingly want an end to
the U.S.-led war in Iraq, one that has tragically led to an estimated 655,
000 Iraqi deaths, according to an authoritative study overseen by a Johns H
opkins University team, and about 3,000 U.S. fatalities.
The shift in Congress and the release of the Iraq Study Group's report repr
esent important openings for supporters of peace, openings that we must act
upon. Yet, in and of themselves, they are not at all likely to bring about
a significant shift in U.S. policy in Iraq and lead to a full, near-term w
ithdrawal of U.S. troops. As such, we need to continue to challenge the war
's very waging and the occupation, not simply their management.
It is for that reason that we are writing. If you are like us--the signing
faculty members from Vassar College--you want to do a lot more to end this
horrific war. One resource most of us do have at our disposal is money--at
least relative to the U.S. population as a whole. And it is this resource t
hat we're asking you to share with the antiwar movement, in a manner greate
r and more sustained than you have done up until this point.
We are calling upon you to support United for Peace and Justice because it
is the leading antiwar coalition in the United States. UFPJ has done fantas
tic and invaluable work, organizing some of the U.S.'s largest antiwar demo
nstrations, while serving as a clearing house and often coordinating mechan
ism for hundreds of local actions across the country, national call-in days
and lobby visits. In 2007, among myriad planned activities, UFPJ is organi
zing a massive demonstration in Washington, DC from January 27-29 to demand
to the new Congress that they understand their "mandate for change" to be
a "mandate for peace and justice"--and that they must take action.
UFPJ is one of the most important vehicles we have to end the war. But like
many grassroots organizations, UFPJ operates on a shoestring budget, and i
ts work is threatened due to insufficient and inconsistent funding. To help
remedy this, each of us has pledged to make a monthly contribution to UFPJ
until the war ends. We're asking you to do the same. Whether it's five dol
lars or one thousand dollars per month--or anything in between--a UFPJ sust
ainer pledge provides the stability and predictability that all successful
organizations need. Of course, if you prefer, you can always give a one-tim
e contribution. There are a number of easy ways to give to UFPJ. Go to www.
unitedforpeace.org/academic<http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?
key=298962057&url_num=1&url=http://www.unitedforpeace.org/academic> t
o learn how.
If you would rather make a pledge to some other organization fighting to en
d the war, there are many great options--indeed, there are hundreds of such
organizations under UFPJ's national umbrella. Regardless, please make a co
mmitment and do so quickly. More than ever, the antiwar movement needs you,
and all of us.
In solidarity,
Elisabeth Cardonne-Arlyck, French
Lisa Gail Collins, Art History and Africana Studies
Luke C. Harris, Political Science
Katherine Hite, Latin American and Latino/a Studies and Political Science
Michael Joyce, Media Studies and English
Amitava Kumar, English
Eileen Leonard, Sociology and American Culture
Kirsten Menking, Geology and Environmental Studies
Joseph Nevins, Geography
Ismail Rashid, Africana Studies and History
Jeffrey Schneider, German Studies
Mary L. (Molly) Shanley, Political Science and Women's Studies
Sam Speers, Director, Office of Religious and Spiritual Life
Robert B. Suter, Biology
Judith Weisenfeld, Religion