WOMEN IN BLACK
An international movement of women for peace
You are welcome to join us at our vigil on the Woodstock Village Green every Sunday from 1:00 to 2:00 pm. Men are welcome to stand in solidarity with us.
Women in Black in Woodstock has been standing on the Village Green with other peace groups weekly since June 2001.
We wear black as a symbol of mourning for ALL the victims of war and violence.
We are silent because words cannot express the tragedy that war and hatred brings.
Today we stand in mourning for the more than 100,000 innocent Iraqis killed in this war, the over 3097 Americans and 394 international soldiers who have lost their lives, the 47,657 American wounded, and the 625,000+ innocent men, women and children who have been maimed and injured. When will it end?
This was a preventable war, a war of choice. The reason always given by the White House was to destroy Saddam Hussein’s Weapons of Mass Destruction. Not one Iraqi WMD has been found! It is now clear that Iraq was never any threat to us or its neighbors.
We stand against all pre-emptive wars that make our whole world a more dangerous and lawless place.
We believe that the $350+ billion spent on this war and its aftermath could have been better spent at home, saving our educational system and restoring the deep cuts to it, strengthening healthcare so 44 million Americans are not without it, shoring up our faltering economy and creating jobs for the record numbers unemployed.
We stand for peaceful resolution of conflict. We need to rely on the rule of law, supported by the international community and enforced by the UN Security Council and a strong International Criminal Court. The use of force is barbaric, antiquated and leads to catastrophic human suffering and damage to the environment.
Democracy is wonderful, but it can never be imposed on people. We now see how difficult and complex the situation is in Iraq; however deciding on an Iraqi government is not the province of the U.S. Brent Scowcroft, National Security Advisor to the first Pres. Bush, said, “What is going to happen the first time we hold an election in Iraq and the radicals win? We’re surely not going to let them take over.” Then and now, the US was involved in antidemocratic, often violent operations in Iraq in ’63, ’74, the ‘80’s and 12 years of sanctions in the ‘90s that have seriously hurt the civilian population.
We also stand in opposition to human rights abuses, the erosion of our civil liberties, profiling and discrimination based on ethnicity or religion, a bloated budget for death and destruction, and intolerance and oppression in all its forms.
Women in Black (WIB) began in June 1988 when Israeli women courageously stood on the streets in Jerusalem to protest the occupation of Palestine, and in solidarity with the women in Palestine. Today, WIB vigils are springing up in cities and towns across the US, and around the world. Each group is independent, and sets its own agenda. In Italy, WIB stand for justice for immigrants and for international peace. In Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia, WIB set an inspiring example of interethnic cooperation during wartime, and in Germany, WIB protest neo-Nazism and nuclear weapons.
What unites all Women In Black groups is a
passion for peace and justice for all the people of the world.
For more info, contact: [email protected]
WHAT YOU CAN DO
TO WORK FOR PEACE
Stay informed: make it your business to seek out alternative sources for news.
Write letters to the editor.
Plan and participate in vigils and demonstrations. (Come stand with us!)
Voice your opinion on talk radio.
Give financial support to and/or volunteer for representatives who oppose war. Tell your representatives today that you support the formation of a Dept. of Peace.
Speak up! Express your views, your concerns and your questions.
SOME RESOURCES
NEWS
Alternative Radio www.alternativeradio.org and WAMC 90.3 Tues. 1-2 pm
Common Dreams News Center www.commondreams.org
Democracy Now www.democracynow.org and Woodstock Public Access TV, Channel 23 Mon.-Fri., 10-11 am
Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting www.fair.org
Friends Committee on National Legislation www.fcnl.org
Pacifica Radio www.pacifica.org
The Nation www.thenation.com
The Guardian Weekly www.guardian.co.uk
Truthout www.truthout.org
Waking Planet www.wakingplanet.com
Z Net www.zmag.org
ACTION
American Friends Service Committee www.afsc.org
Families for Peaceful Tomorrows www.peacefultomorrows.org
International Action Center www.iacenter.org
Media Workers Against War www.mwaw.org
Move On www.moveon.org
Not in Our Name www.nion.us
Oxfam America www.oxfamamerica.org
United for Peace and Justice www.unitedforpeace.org
Voice for Change www.voice4change.org
WRITE TO:
Pres. George Bush [email protected]
Sen. Hillary Clinton [email protected]
Rep. Maurice D. Hinchey www.house.gov/hinchey
Sen. Charles Schumer [email protected]
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Woodstock Times [email protected]
Daily Freeman [email protected]
Poughkeepsie Journal [email protected]
A different and better world is possible and you can help create it!
WOODSTOCK WOMEN IN BLACK
PEACE WOMEN
Code Pink www.codepink4peace.org
Gather the Women www.gatherthewomen.org
Women in Black www.womeninblack.org www.womeninblack.net
Women’s Action for New Directions www.wand.org
Women’s Human Rights Network www.whrnet.org
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom
www.wilpf.org, www.wilpf.int.ch/, www.peacewomen.org
Women Waging Peace www.womenwagingpeace.net