Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Contacts:
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, mclarty@greens.org
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene@greens.org
While its members protest the Iraq occupation
along with Cindy Sheehan, MoveOn.org itself favors continued
occupation, say Greens.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green Party leaders are
challenging MoveOn.org to support an immediate pullout of troops from
Iraq.
"MoveOn has done an admirable job of rallying
people nationwide behind Cindy Sheehan's protest vigil in
Crawford, Texas," said Rebecca Rotzler, co-chair of the
Green Party of the United States and Deputy Mayor of New Paltz, New
York. "But MoveOn itself has undermined such efforts by refusing
to endorse an immediate end to the occupation of Iraq."
Journalist Norman Solomon has noted that MoveOn
declined to support a resolution from Rep. Lynn Woolsey stating that
"the president should develop and implement a plan to begin the
immediate withdrawal of United States Armed Forces from Iraq" and
Rep. Barbara Lee's (D-Calif.) bill to block the establishment of
permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq ("The Iraq Warand MoveOn",
Common Dreams, August 18, <http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0818-33.htm>).
Several Green Party members, including Ms. Rotzler
(who also serves as co-chair of the Green Party's Peace Action
Committee), Andrea Garland of New Orleans, and Mato Ska of Phoenix
have traveled to Crawford to join Cindy Sheehan's vigil at 'Camp
Casey' near Mr. Bush's ranch, while thousands of other Greens
participated in support vigils across the U.S. on August 17.
The Peace Action Committee issued a statement in
support of the Camp Casey vigil <http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2005_08_10.shtml>,
which Ms. Rotzler presented to Ms. Sheehan.
"We challenge MoveOn to listen to its own
membership, and take a stand against the invasion and continued
occupation of Iraq," said Ms. Garland.
Greens have rejected the claim of Democrats like
Senators Hillary Clinton (NY) and Joe Biden (Del.) that the problem
with the Iraq War is the Bush Administration's military
miscalculations.
"The invasion and occupation are crimes,
based on deception about the motivations for the invasion, a radical
ideology that embraces 'preventive war' -- condemned by international
law after World War II -- and an oil grab," said Leenie Halbert,
Louisiana Green and member of the party's International Committee.
"This abuse of power was inevitable after most Democrats in
October 2002 voted with Republicans to surrender Congress's
constitutionally mandated power to declare war to the White
House."
MORE INFORMATION
Green Party of the United States
http://www.gp.org
1711 18th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009.
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193
Green Party Peace Action Committee
http://www.gp.org/committees/peace/
Gold Star Families For Peace
http://www.GSFP.org
