South Florida Peace Events

Broward County Antiwar group protests threats against Iran 

Ft. Lauderdale, FL: On Friday, April 21, 2006 the
Broward AntiWar Coalition (BAWC) will hold a protest
at 5pm at the Federal Building in downtown Fort
Lauderdale at the Federal Building located at the
corner of Broward Blvd. and NE 3rd Ave. in opposition
to the recent U.S. threats against Iran for the
development of their nuclear program. From there the
group plans to march through downtown Ft. Lauderdale.

BAWC not only defends Iran’s sovereignty to develop as
it sees fit, but defends Iran’s right to develop
nuclear energy. “The Pentagon is currently threatening
to use ‘tactical nuclear devices’—the people of the
U.S. don’t want to see another Hiroshima. The U.S. is
the nuclear threat with thousands of nuclear
weapons—the U.S. weapons of mass destruction are the
greatest threat to humanity,” said John Peter Daly
from BAWC.

“We heard the same lies as a pretext to invade Iraq
where there never were any weapons of mass
destruction. In addition to our demand to no attacks
against Iran, we call for the immediate withdrawal of
all U.S. troops from Iraq,” added Daly.

“The big offense that Iran has committed is not
enriched uranium, but the development of an
independent economy out of reach of U.S. corporations.
The attacks against Iran are for the same reason that
the U.S. is occupying Iraq—for direct U.S. ownership
and exploitation of the region’s resources. At the
same time here at home all economic problems are being
blamed on immigrants—where again the problem is
multi-national corporations that can set up shop
at-will anywhere, creating havoc in Latin American
economies and setting the stage for millions of people
immigrating to the U.S. to find work. We call for
amnesty for all immigrants to win better wages and
benefits for all working people here.” Daly explained.

Formed in September, 2001, the Broward AntiWar
Coalition (BAWC) is a non-partisan and
democratically-run community organization that
organizes protests and educational events in
cooperation with other like-minded groups. We are
united in our opposition to a U.S. foreign policy that
attacks and dominates other countries in the interests
of Big Business and the wealthy few. BAWC opposes U.S.
occupations and wars, from Iraq to Afghanistan to
Haiti. We stand against all forms of racism, sexism,
homophobia and anti-immigrant chauvinism. Members are
diverse in our views, but we share a common vision
based on values of peace, social justice, and
equality. BAWC opposes economic and social policies
that neglect the majority while enriching the few. We
oppose the government’s attacks upon the Bill of
Rights and our hard-won rights.
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THURSDAY, 7:30 PM
ROOM 2, GLCC, 1717 N. ANDREWS AVE, FORT LAUDERDALE
"GENOCIDE BY SANCTIONS" (1998, 28 min.)
ADMISSION IS FREE!

At this Thursday, April 20 Broward AntiWar Coalition
meeting, we'll be showing the 28 minute documentary,
"Genocide by Sanctions" with Ramsey Clark and directed
by Gloria LaRiva. This 1998 film documents Clark's
trip to Iraq to look at the economic sanctions and
their effect which resulted in the death of an
estimated 1.5 million children during the 1990s. How
can we forget the image of Sec. of State Madelyn
Albright when asked whether the death of those
children was worth it, answered "yes"?

Why show this film today when so much has happened
since then? We need to look at the imperially-inspired
criminalization of whole nations through economic
sanctions and what should be the perspectives of the
antiwar/peace movement. Does this recent history have
any application for looking at U.S. threats against
Iran today? What can we do?

After the short film, we'll have political discussion
on these or any other related topics raised by the
movie. Following that, we'll have a brief meeting and
introduction to BAWC for anyone interested in getting
involved.