Peace Action Maine
statement regarding the
war with Iraq -
March 20, 2003

Peace Action Maine deeply deplores the Bush administration's decision to abandon negotiations, inspections, and the rule of law as exercised through the United Nations. We call on both the American and Iraqi governments to end hostilities and secure the safety of all people whose lives are endangered: Americans, Iraqis, and others. We condemn without reservation military policies-- intentional or not-- that inevitably target civilians, as well as retaliatory attacks against the populations of countries not directly involved in the conflict.

Peace and justice for all peoples in the Middle East will not come at the end of a bayonet, in the aftermath of missile attacks, or by reducing cities to rubble. Democracy cannot be imposed by military occupation. Americans will be made less, not more, secure by this war.

We call on the Congress of the United States to exercise its Constitutional obligation to balance the unbridled power of the executive branch, demand a return to negotiations through the United Nations, and restore the core values of American democracy. We ask all Americans who are committed to peace and justice to stand in nonviolent opposition to this war.

A MESSAGE TO ALL WHO
HAVE STOOD FOR SO MANY
MONTHS AGAINST WAR IN IRAQ

The current crisis draws us all into a dark vortex. Our president has been determined in his efforts to isolate himself from world opinion. We have been mobilizing for months: with phone calls to Congress, rallies, local resolutions, letters to newspapers, new coalitions. Yet war now seems inevitable. The temptation for many of us will be to go home-shrugging our shoulders in individual acts of resignation, despair, and anger. But now more than ever we need to find ways to collectively express our anguish and our dissent. It may be that takes a new form for some as war breaks out: finding the power of prayer or meditation in spiritual sanctuaries. For some, the streets will be the only place to be.

For those unsure if any of our actions mattered, I want to offer some vision of why we must continue. Will our work alter Bush's course today; over the course of the next few weeks? Perhaps, and perhaps not. We cannot guarantee that. I will not offer a false promise in order to get people to turn out for yet one more rally only to see people feel let down at a later date. I ask each and every person to stand together, to draw strength from each other, to continue to inspire each other to act despite the looming war. Ours must be a movement built not just on an effort to derail this war-we must stand committed to a broader vision, to a longer term commitment to peace and justice. If the misguided policies of our current administration tell us anything, they tell us that now more than ever we need to offer a new model, and we can do that.

In just months, we have done what many of the grand intellectuals have proclaimed impossible-in a country dominated by corporate mass media, with communities suffocated by strip mall sprawl, with individualism and isolation the norm-we have witnessed the birth and nurtured the growth of a mass movement.

This movement has come together in opposition to a war with Iraq. But in doing so, the core of the movement-what drew people out-was a set of values that can become the core of an effort to reshape our world. We can craft a new foreign policy: speaking against war in Iraq, we articulated an alternative: 1. Insist that respect for human rights become a cornerstone of policy. Don't sell arms to tyrants and dictators who one decade are an ally and the next an enemy; 2. Demand that our country become a role model in reducing the world's stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction. Put an end to current policies that foster new weapons development-siphoning funds away from social needs here and abroad, and contributing to a new arms race across the world; 3. Cooperate with the international community. Acting outside of institutions such as the U.N., this country alienates friends and creates new foes. The U.S. could use its unparalleled economic and strategic power to strengthen the U.N. and international cooperation.

If we recognize that together we can move toward a new vision, then we can all avoid being drawn by this vortex of war into the depths of despair and resignation. Together we can forge a new foreign policy, creating a culture of peace and a society truly based on justice for all.

Peace,
Greg