Dover to DC Memorial Procession to Honor and Mourn Those Killed in Iraq
Military Families, Veterans, Peace Activists Join in Calling On Bush Administration to Stop Hiding Toll of War, and End Occupation of Iraq
Dover, Delaware and Washington, DC -
In the first such protest of the war in Iraq, military families will join U.S. veterans and peace activists in a memorial procession that will link Dover Air Force Base to the White House. (Dover Air Force Base is where the bodies of those killed in Iraq arrive back in this country.) The procession will honor and mourn those who have been killed in Iraq during the war -including not only U.S. servicemen and women but also Iraqis and foreign nationals - demand generous care for the more than ten thousand U.S. wounded, and call for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
"Mr. Bush has done everything in his power to hide the human consequence of this war," said (YOUR NAME AND ORGANIZATION HERE). Noting that the media have been barred from Dover Air Force Base, She added "Just as he is trying to hide his fabricated pre-war weapons claims by delaying a report until after the election, he is trying to hide the broken and dead bodies that are coming back from Iraq. But America needs to see this reality - to mourn our fellow Americans who have died, and to make informed decisions about our nation’s involvement in Iraq."
The event will combine two days of processions and a funeral caravan, and will also include a stop at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, home of many of the wounded soldiers returning from Iraq. The schedule is as follows:
Sunday, March 14, Noon – Gathering at Camden Friends Meeting House, in Camden, Delaware, followed by memorial procession to gates of Dover Air Force Base
Sunday, March 14, 2:30PM – Observances at Dover Air Force Base featuring family members of troops killed in Iraq, followed by funeral caravan to Baltimore.
Monday, March 15, 9AM – Observances at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, followed by a memorial procession to the White House
Monday, March 15, 2:30PM – Reading of the names of the dead in Lafayette Park, across from the White House. The event will end with a nonviolent direct action as members of the group attempt to deliver those names to the White House.
The two day event will be the largest gathering to date of family members of troops killed in Iraq who also oppose the war. According to Nancy Lessin, Coordinator of Military Families Speak Out, "What we must do is pull back the veil, honor and mourn the dead and acknowledge the wounded – both U.S. military personnel and the tens of thousands of Iraqi casualties – as we demand: start telling the truth, stop hiding the toll, and bring an end to this war."
For interviews with military family members, contact Ryan Fletcher at 202-641-0277
ATTENTION PHOTO DESKS: Numerous photo ops, including: memorial processions with banners and memorial wreaths; demonstrations at gates of Dover Air Force Base and entrance to Walter Reed Army Medical Center; reading of the names of the dead in front of White House; nonviolent direct action.
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Sponsored by: American Friends Service Committee, Baltimore Physicians for Social Responsibility, Baltimore Pledge of Resistance, Brandywine Peace Community, Campus Greens, Catholic Peace Fellowship, Chester County Peace Movement ( Chester, Pennsylvania), Church of the Brethren, Washington , DC, Code Pink, DC Anti-War Network, Delaware County PA Wage Peace and Justice, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Haverford Friend Meeting, Iraq Pledge of Resistance, Metropolitan Christian Council of Philadelphia, Military Families Speak Out, New York City Labor Against the War, 9/11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, Pacem in Terris, Pax Christi USA, Peace Action, People for Peace and Justice, Quaker Action Group, The Shalom Center, SNAFU, SOA Watch, NE, St. Louis Instead of War Coalition, Student Peace Action Network, United for Peace and Justice, Veterans For Peace, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Voices in the Wilderness, War Resisters League, Washington Peace Center, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
Military Families, Veterans, Peace Activists Join in Calling On Bush Administration to Stop Hiding Toll of War, and End Occupation of Iraq
Dover, Delaware and Washington, DC -
In the first such protest of the war in Iraq, military families will join U.S. veterans and peace activists in a memorial procession that will link Dover Air Force Base to the White House. (Dover Air Force Base is where the bodies of those killed in Iraq arrive back in this country.) The procession will honor and mourn those who have been killed in Iraq during the war -including not only U.S. servicemen and women but also Iraqis and foreign nationals - demand generous care for the more than ten thousand U.S. wounded, and call for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
"Mr. Bush has done everything in his power to hide the human consequence of this war," said (YOUR NAME AND ORGANIZATION HERE). Noting that the media have been barred from Dover Air Force Base, She added "Just as he is trying to hide his fabricated pre-war weapons claims by delaying a report until after the election, he is trying to hide the broken and dead bodies that are coming back from Iraq. But America needs to see this reality - to mourn our fellow Americans who have died, and to make informed decisions about our nation’s involvement in Iraq."
The event will combine two days of processions and a funeral caravan, and will also include a stop at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, home of many of the wounded soldiers returning from Iraq. The schedule is as follows:
Sunday, March 14, Noon – Gathering at Camden Friends Meeting House, in Camden, Delaware, followed by memorial procession to gates of Dover Air Force Base
Sunday, March 14, 2:30PM – Observances at Dover Air Force Base featuring family members of troops killed in Iraq, followed by funeral caravan to Baltimore.
Monday, March 15, 9AM – Observances at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, followed by a memorial procession to the White House
Monday, March 15, 2:30PM – Reading of the names of the dead in Lafayette Park, across from the White House. The event will end with a nonviolent direct action as members of the group attempt to deliver those names to the White House.
The two day event will be the largest gathering to date of family members of troops killed in Iraq who also oppose the war. According to Nancy Lessin, Coordinator of Military Families Speak Out, "What we must do is pull back the veil, honor and mourn the dead and acknowledge the wounded – both U.S. military personnel and the tens of thousands of Iraqi casualties – as we demand: start telling the truth, stop hiding the toll, and bring an end to this war."
For interviews with military family members, contact Ryan Fletcher at 202-641-0277
ATTENTION PHOTO DESKS: Numerous photo ops, including: memorial processions with banners and memorial wreaths; demonstrations at gates of Dover Air Force Base and entrance to Walter Reed Army Medical Center; reading of the names of the dead in front of White House; nonviolent direct action.
###
Sponsored by: American Friends Service Committee, Baltimore Physicians for Social Responsibility, Baltimore Pledge of Resistance, Brandywine Peace Community, Campus Greens, Catholic Peace Fellowship, Chester County Peace Movement ( Chester, Pennsylvania), Church of the Brethren, Washington , DC, Code Pink, DC Anti-War Network, Delaware County PA Wage Peace and Justice, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Haverford Friend Meeting, Iraq Pledge of Resistance, Metropolitan Christian Council of Philadelphia, Military Families Speak Out, New York City Labor Against the War, 9/11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, Pacem in Terris, Pax Christi USA, Peace Action, People for Peace and Justice, Quaker Action Group, The Shalom Center, SNAFU, SOA Watch, NE, St. Louis Instead of War Coalition, Student Peace Action Network, United for Peace and Justice, Veterans For Peace, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Voices in the Wilderness, War Resisters League, Washington Peace Center, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom