Mar 1, 2003

“As an American citizen with ancestry on this continent that precedes the Revolutionary War I want to register my complete opposition to any kind of preemptive attack on Iraq or any other sovereign nation.” This is the message Bob Vance of Petoskey, Mich., phoned in to his senators in the Feb. 26 Virtual March on Washington.

The Fair Taxes for All Coalition (FTFAC), uniting over 500 grassroots organizations, has launched a petition and direct action campaign demanding that the House and Senate block George W. Bush’s $674 billion tax cut for the rich, which they warn will cost $2 trillion in lost revenues over the coming decade.

The latest hire by the cable news network MSNBC – co-owned by General Electric/NBC and Microsoft – is Michael Savage, a radio talkshow host noted for his unabashed bigotry. Savage is scheduled to have his own weekly one-hour show on MSNBC beginning in March.

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – In their first meeting since the 2002 elections gave Republicans control of both Houses of Congress, members of the AFL-CIO Executive Council announced a two-year campaign to “put political power back in the hands of working people” by defeating George W. Bush in the 2004 elections.

A Florida university professor arrested last week said on Feb. 25 he was being “crucified” by U.S. authorities and vowed to continue a protest hunger strike, Dr. Sami Al-Arian, a Palestinian born in Kuwait was arrested with three other men on Feb. 20.

EDGEWOOD, Md. – A delegation, which included several members of European parliaments, were turned away here Feb. 23 when they attempted to inspect one of the Pentagon’s most notorious chemical and biological weapons (CBW) plants. The facility violates a U.S.-Soviet treaty banning the development or stockpiling of CBW, otherwise known as weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Over 5,000 Yale workers are set to strike March 3. That day, they will be joined by a community march and rally led by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. The one-week strike may be the first time that graduate student teachers and researchers will join service, maintenance, clerical, technical and health care workers in a simultaneous job action. The different groups of workers share an understanding that they can achieve their goals only if all work together.

GREENVILLE, N.C.: Residents fight for holiday

The Rev. Jesse Jackson was back in his hometown in February, marching with 500 residents to County Council chambers to declare Jan. 20 a holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In their hands were petitions signed by 10,000 registered voters in this rural county demanding that Pitt County join the rest of the country in celebrating King Day.

NEW YORK – Under the slogan “Books not bombs,” thousands of students at hundreds of campuses across the country are planning a one-day strike on March 5 to demand better funding for public education and an end to the Bush administration’s drive for war in Iraq. The strike is shaping up to be the biggest student action since the Vietnam War.

Continuing the coverage from last week, here are more reports from Feb. 15 and other peace actions throughout the U.S.