Why we are going to the Conventions

Here at CODEPINK we're getting ready to bring our Peace Platform to the Democrat and Republican National Conventions.

Click here to find out why we think it's important to make the trek to Denver and the Twin Cities.

Check out our plans at www.codepinkalert.org/conventions

Why I'm going to the conventions...
By Rae Abileah

Part I: DNC ~ Live it!
I will travel on the train to Denver from San Francisco with a group of CODEPINK activists because I am tired of waiting for politicians to change, and ready to amp up my modeling of the world I want to live. That modeling includes taking the "Peace Train" and talking with the passengers and singing all the way around the mountains, riding in a pink bicycle brigade through the streets in Denver, visiting a free healthcare clinic, and issuing CODEPINK security alerts to renew public trust and confidence. Out of emails and phone calls and webpages will arise a flock of women (many of whom I get to work with from afar), a force for peace, that will make history. The world's media will be landing in Denver to cover the "who will be the next president of the superpower" story, and we tell them the "who are the electorate" story about peace voters. I am committed to training and building capacity in (primarily female) organizers, building a skilled movement. I still believe that it is the people that must lead the US out of war, that must refuse to fight, that must call for campaign finance reform, that must engage in civic duty to create a democracy. And in these dark times, my civic duty includes out-of-the-box creative actions that shed a little light in the tunnel to guide us out.

Part II: BRC ~ Love it!
I will fly to Black Rock City, home of the Burning Man festival, in the weekend between the conventions because it is my annual ritual to return to my desert-dwelling community of eccentric artists, who this year chose "The American Dream" as the theme of the event. Last year at BRC activists in pink slips served up peach mint martinis and peach cobbler while chatting up im-peach-mint. This year some of us will be handing out copies of Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" and weaving dreamcatchers, not only to drive out the nightmare of the bush regime, but also to call awareness to the ongoing US occupation of indigenous lands. I will go to BRC to release, at the temple there, these past eight years of ill-governance: I know the time is approaching to put the Bush years to death, and I want to be ready to rise from the ashes of this broken government. I go to BRC to reignite my spirit and passion for artivism, to keep living a succulent joyous life, to find the Phoenix inside me.

Part III: RNC ~ Reclaim it!
I got swept into the pink whirlwind of CODEPINK activism at the RNC in NYC 2004, which was the summer after my college graduation in Manhattan. I found a ride home from the protest to California on Craigslist with a CODEPINK activist, Zanne, and her moving truck. Who knew a rideshare would lead to my first job out of college and my future traveling, ruckus-raising lifestyle?! Zanne and I spent two weeks on the road in the South registering voters and talking with women about pinkslippin' Bush. We chose tiny towns with fun names like War, West Virginia and Truth or Consequences, Texas. We spoke out. Four years later, things are worse now then they were then. How could I not return to the scene of the crime, the gathering of the war hawks?

Someone once sang, "Bush stole the best years of my twenties," and I think that's true for most of my peers (certainly those of us hit hard by the economy, or in youth prisons, or overseas fighting to keep our buddies alive, or just trying to get by in poor schools or without college funding)... not to mention the innocent lives of over a million Iraqis, thousands of soldiers and contractors, and people all over the world who have been impacted by US foreign policy (I mean, imagine what we could do with all those billions, no, trillions, of dollars if we weren't spending it all on violence and weaponry ~ sustainable solutions for world hunger, poverty, debt relief, environmental degradation, clean energy, education, healthcare, bicycles for everyone, subsidies for organic produce... the list goes on and on.) The Republican party's politics of domination and consolidated executive power have become not only an embarrassment to the world, but a slow demise of our Constitution. While some of my leftist sisters may believe that this party is rotten to the core, I think there are republican values that are integral to our American culture, the values that my stepdad espoused when he became a Republican after fighting in the Vietnam war, like fiscal conservatism (hello 3 trillion dollar war--NOT in line with this value!), state and local rights (PA Attorney General Tom Corbet recently said to townspeople protesting toxic sludge killing kids in their own back yards, "There is no inalienable right to local self-government." Say what?!), and a focus on family, faith, and neighborhood organizing based on values. This time around, I am going to the RNC not only to protest and agitate, but also to reclaim these ideals. I'm going to the RNC with all the messages of the bills that have been passed over the past nightmare of a presidency, with a simple request--action, not doublespeak. I want: Clean Energy, Healthy Forests, No Child Left Behind, Women's Liberation, an end to Terrorism, and the announcement of a true CODEPINK Alert!

Part IV: The Race
I will continue traveling onward after the RNC because just like in 2004 there are a lot of conversations to be had with Americans about what issues are important to them and how each of us can do something to make our lives, our country, and our world a safer, healthier, more sparkling, heart-centered and joyous place. Being on the road with activists, singers, artists gives me hope that a world free of war is truly possible. While the nation turns to candidates, I will be turning to candid conversation and practical action. Getting out the vote means having something to vote for (and one day maybe not having to hold our noses while we check those boxes in the booth) and also creating community.

Part V: The Finish Line?
After the election when, like the silence that follows Christmas morning after all the presents have been sufficiently ravaged, the political fervor dies down and people forget about platforms and promises, when the election is "so last season" and the latest sitcom or new iPhone is consuming our attention, CODEPINK will still be taking creative action for peace because the war will still not be over. I'll be at the inauguration with my PINK sisters, mostly because that's what my mom taught me growing up, when she kept me home from school to watch the inauguration live broadcast on TV and said something like, "When you grow up you must do something to make the world a more beautiful place." Only now bearing witness means I have to act too, and engage in the stuff that is sometimes too scary to seem real, and be committed to changing it.

Touring the Halls of Shame!

Concerned Citizens Deliver Message to Congress: 'Shape up or we will
vote you out!'

March to Duncan Hunter's Office:



Shaming of Roy Blunt:


Large Delegation Inducts Members of Congress Into the Hall of Shame Today


See a photo slideshow here!

CODEPINK Women for Peace led a coalition of anti-war groups on a tour
through the halls of Congress on Monday afternoon targeting members
who are staunch supporters of the Iraq war, encourage military strike
against Iran, violate civil liberties, and those who receive oil and
defense monies. The delegation estimated to be 50 turned out to be 150
with members from over 25 states and dozens of national and local
peace organizations. The 150 broke up into 5 groups according to
region and visited 15 Members of Congress and presented them with a
Certificate of Induction to the People's Hall of Shame. A special
visit to Ike Skelton's office was added to the list because he used
profanities when referring to the CODEPINK women present at the
Petraeus hearing last week. The always creative CODEPINK women sang
him a special song using his own description of us to the tune of
Yankee Doodle (The song's chorus is Americans Seek Soldiers Home Our
Leaders Evade Solutions).

"Many people in Congress have become totally disconnected from the
people. We see this in their support for the war in Iraq and a new war
in Iran, and for taking away our precious civil liberties," says
CODEPINK cofounder Medea Benjamin. "The outpouring of people in
Congress today shows that Americans are willing to travel the
distance, skip work and spend precious time away from their families
to deliver the message to Congress that we want them to work for peace
and to stop supporting this war!" says Desiree Fairooz, CODEPINK DC
Coordinator.



Order as follows:

1. Duncan Hunter Rayburn 2265
2. Dana Rohrbacher Rayburn 2300
3. Dan Burton Rayburn 2308
4. Brian Baird Rayburn 2443
5. Ike Skelton Rayburn 2206
6. John Boehner Longworth 1011
7. Rahm Emmanuel Longworth 1319
8. Bob Etheridge Longworth 1533
9. Roy Blunt Cannon 217
Senators
1. Lindsey Graham Russell 290
2. John McCain Russell 241
3. Mitch McConnell Russell 361A
4. James Inhofe Russell 453
(take tunnel to Hart via Dirksen)
5. John Cornyn Hart 517
6. Joseph Lieberman Hart 706

Mother on 21st Day of Fast Arrested at Sen. Lieberman's Office: Asking Senator to Promote Diplomacy, Not War With Iran!

Click here to see a slideshow of photos from the action.

Outraged that Senator Lieberman has publicly called for bombing Iran, CODEPINK member Leslie Angeline, 50, from Santa Rosa, CA, began a hunger strike to get a meeting with the Senator and was arrested in the senator's office today at around 11 a.m. while asking for a meeting. The senator was speaking on the floor of the Senate around the time of the arrest. Arrest happened very quickly after the group entered the office. Leslie is now in the 21st day of the fast, and the Senator has still refused to meet. On June 28, Angeline fainted in his office and was rushed to the hospital for treatment. Angeline refused to end her fast and is now in her 21st day.

Angeline recently returned from a citizen diplomacy trip to Iran with the group Global Exchange. "When I heard that Lieberman said he thought we should launch military action against Iran, I couldn't help but think of the 70% of the Iranian population who are under the age of 30-—the age of my son. Iran is a country of warm, kind, and generous children and their families. We cannot bomb these kids," says Angeline.


Angeline is anxious to meet with Senator Lieberman to explain why an attack on Iran would turn 70 million Iranians, now mostly friendly to the US, into enemies and would undermine US security.

In the past, when Angeline has gone to Senator Leiberman's office, they have threatened to call the police if she stays for more than 10 minutes. This time, Angeline was quickly arrested.

CODEPINK to Hillary and Nancy: Lead Us Out of Iraq Now!

This morning at the Take Back America conference when Senator Hillary Clinton took the stage CODEPINKers held up pink signs reading "Lead Us Out of Iraq Now!" and pleaded with the senator to bring our troops home now, to be a leader in ending the occupation of Iraq. While Hillary made some great promises about offering universal healthcare and ensuring a preschool education for every American child, and reiterated that she voted no on the last Supplemental spending bill to appropriate funds to the war, without her leadership on actually bringing our troops home with a full and immediate troop withdrawal, it remains unclear where funds would come from for these excellent domestic programs, and how we can move forward as a nation. Hillary's commentary about the Iraq war included a commentary about how the US has liberated Iraq from Saddam, helped hold democratic elections, and installed the Iraqi government. Her commentary seemed to blame Iraq for the ongoing violence, which in turn was met with loud boos from the audience. Hillary walked a careful talk today, but it was not convincing to many in the audience, who feel the only way that trust in Hillary could be restored is through her actions to end the war, not her rhetoric. As an aside, Hillary asserted that the US is the oldest democracy. I seem to remember something about Athens appearing in a school textbook. Hillary also stated that the US has the hardest working population in the world. To me, that kind of hubris does not inspire the kind of patriotism I feel for this country and the global community.

CODEPINK protested at Hillary's talk at the Take Back America conference last year as well. This year our message was a proactive one: Hillary, be a leader and bring our troops home! Take action NOW to end the war!

Nancy Pelosi made some excellent comments about listening to young people in this country, who are agitated, don't believe elected officials will take action, and are fed up with the government. She spoke about meeting with people and having dialogues. I asked her to meet with us in San Francisco, as she has yet to meet with the anti-war movement in district. Because we have not be able to meet with her, we've been camping outside her doorstep! Nancy made some excellent points about green jobs and about the need to bring our troops home, and we would like to believe that she will stick to her word--we know that she, as Speaker of the House, can do more to end the US occupation of Iraq, and that's why we were in the audience today with our pink signs and loud voices for peace, demanding that these elected officials lead us out of Iraq!

CODEPINK Says: End the Occupation!

CODEPINK joined End the Occupation, United for Peace and Justice, and many other groups and individuals for a rally outside Congress and a march calling for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine. In the morning CODEPINKers attended the ADC (Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee, www.adc.org) national conference, and participated in a teach-in panel on Palestine. There they met the ambassador of the PLO, Afif Safieh. Here's a group photo:

Love from SLO CODEPINK!

Today the UPS dropped off a very special package at the Pink House: a care package from San Luis Obispo CODEPINK in California! The package was full of all sorts of goodies, including chai, peanut brittle, wine, and olives, all from local growers in the SLO area. They sent us a lovely note signed by their members with words of inspiration, news clippings from their local pink actions, and a CODEPINK SLO totebag!

From the Pink House women to SLO CODEPINK: Thank You!!!

Here we are celebrating this very sweet and thoughtful gift:

"We are not a nation at war..."

By Rae Abileah

Today as I was walking to the metro with a guy who works at Walter Reed Hospital, he said, "We are not a nation at war; we are an army at war." It made me think about how in wars past we in the US have rationed, held scrap metal drives, women who were traditionally in the home took up jobs in factories, the feeling of war was everywhere. It is entirely possible to walk onto a college campus, through a downtown city, or down the halls of Congress, and be oblivious of the fact that our nation is in fact at war. Of course the local cost of war is immense--the human death toll, the financial cutbacks to social services, and many of us in the poorest communities, or those of us who have family in the military, feel the war immensely.

Today when I was at Congress for a meeting I stopped by the underground subway between the House buildings and the Capitol as many Congressmembers were walking through to vote on something. Though I didn't have a specific bill to ask them about, I did shake many of their hands, and to every one I asked the question, "Have you done something today to stop the war in Iraq?" "Help us bring our troops home!" Because it is possible to walk these halls of Congress and feel very distant from the mere idea of war, it felt very effective to be a constant voice about the conflict outside the passageway to the Capitol. Imagine if every time there was any vote in Congress, every member going from their office to the Capitol was confronted with the message that it is time to bring our troops home and get out of Iraq. Our Congresspeople are for the most part behind the times in terms of public opinion about the war. Not only do we have to "push" them to do the right thing, support key legislation, stop the war... we have to "pull" them, by leading them towards the right direction. I envision hundreds of people here on a daily basis helping to pull Congress away from the Bush Agenda and towards peace. To increase our numbers from a dozen to a hundred... we need YOU! Click on the links to the right to find out how to join us in DC! Or raise a ruckus at your Congressperson's nearest office!

Photos from actions in DC today, including CODEPINK at a rally with Kucinich and Clinton, in solidarity with a labor rally, and outside the White House on the bullhorn during a press conference with Bush and Blair. Photos taken by Liz Hourican:

Roll Call Article! CODEPINK: On the Hill to Stay

The Congressional daily paper, Roll Call, sent a reporter, Bree, and a photographer, Tom, over to our house to profile us and our work in Congress. They did a very sweet and detailed piece about CODEPINK and our Activist House that was the front page news story today!

Click here to read the full story.

Inspired to join us here in DC? Fill out an online application and come to DC! We need you here with us to take action in Congress! Plus, this June and July we're holding week-long training sessions at the house. Click here to find out more about our Peace Surge activist trainings in DC.

Mother's Day 2007

On Mother's Day in DC we gathered in Lafayette Park across from the White House for a Peace Festival for kids and families. Hundreds of children, parents, grandparents, and others flocked to the park for games, face painting, singing, music, dancing, and fun that culminated in a kids' march on Pennsylvania Avenue, and a ceremony during which we tied pink ribbons with names of Iraqis and US soldiers killed in the war and the Mother's Day Proclamation onto the White House fence. The day was an outrageously joyous celebration of motherhood ~ all the ways that we mother each other and the peace movement ~ with a very somber and moving undertone about the severity of the need to end the US occupation of Iraq, and to speak out as mothers and daughters against war.

Click here to check out a slideshow of photos I took.
Tons of people were taking photos and video, many more photos coming soon!

Kid's activities included arts and crafts, crown making, music (banging on pots and pans), dance, face painting, a wishing well, and a bean bag toss to "put words into George W's mouth."

Bean bag toss on the park lawn.

Dana, Sonia, and Rae take a moment to pose for a photo between coordinating the action.
The CODEPINK Choir in action!

Mothers and daughters read the Mother's Day Proclamation together on stage.

This Is Leah rocks the stage.

Janine helps lead the kids' peace march in front of the White House.


I Miss America passes out pink carnations to the kids.

CODEPINK Gathers the Women outside the White House!

Desiree ties a ribbon to the White House fence.
The completed painted mural displayed on Penn Ave. The mural will go with the Global Exchange and CODEPINK peace delegation to Iran later this summer.

Back at the CODEPINK Activist House, women celebrate with an imPEACHment pie eating ceremony honoring all the women whose hard work made today such a vibrant success. Here, Medea gives Sonia, the DC Coordinator, a bite of the pie, and a huge appreciation for everything she's done to make this week of actions so inspiring and smooth.

Mother's Day Week of Actions!

By Rae Abileah

Whew! The CODEPINK DC house has been a whirlwind of action this week! Women from all over the country--Wyoming, California, Arizona, Texas, New York, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Illinois, Indiana, and more!--are here for actions with CODEPINK in Congress and around our nation's capital! So far we've had incredibly powerful actions, time to bond and connect, great singing all the time, and we've made quite an impact! Here are some photos and highlights from the past several days in DC. There are so many stories to tell, and I've been mostly behind the scenes this week supporting local actions around the country, so stay tuned for the full backstories from the women who have been going to these actions!

Click here to see a slideshow of photos from the past several days!

Thursday, May 10

Thursday morning CODEPINK activists attended hearings in Congress--see Midge's posts below this one to read more and see youtubes about that. Lori and Gael were arrested after the hearing ended and had to spend the night in jail. Thursday afternoon we held a Congressional Tea at the Mott House. Robert Greenwald spoke with us, we heard action stories from all the myriad of different things CODEPINKers have been doing over the week, we screened Greenwald's new film, and we saw a live performance of A Single Woman, a play and forthcoming documentary about Janette Rankin, the first US Congresswoman, who voted against WWI and WWII. The room was gorgeously decorated in pink and we even had pink lemonade and refreshments. At night we held a fundraiser at Bus Boys and Poets, our favorite progressive spot in DC. The fundraiser included an outstanding performance by Emma's Revolution and an auction led by Iraq Veteran Against the War Geoff Millard, featuring hot items such as a pair of pink heels signed by Gloria Steinem and Jane Fonda, a Stop the Next War Now book autographed by Alice Walker, and a pink sequined dress worn to Bush's inaugural ball and glamorously modeled by Dana. The dance party continued late into the night!

Dana, Sonia, and Geoff present the CODEPINK Auction at Bus Boys and Poets.

Friday, May 11

Today CODEPINK activists visited the offices of the 59 democrats who voted against McGovern's bill to bring the troops home and gave these reps the "what for." These reps need to be held accountable to their constituents, who voted them in last November so they could end the war! We were especially surprised to see that Re. McNerney from California, who beat incumbent Richard Pombo (R) last November, largely on an anti-war platform, did not support McGovern's bill.

We held a luncheon with women reporters and media activists. In the afternoon we held a media training at the CODEPINK house, facilitated by CODEPINK's communications coordinator, Dana, and cofounder Medea.

In the evening we had the DC House premier screening of CODEPINK's newest film, Iraqi and American Women Speak Out in the Peace Room. It was amazing how our banner making and meeting room was transformed into a comfortable and pink movie theater, projector, couches, pink screen, and all!

Saturday, May 12

Today we had a house potluck and held a Women's Congress in the great tradition of Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation. We had a big group discussion and then broke into smaller groups focusing on these topics: Supporting our troops and working with veterans and military families; Direct Action and Civil Disobedience; Troops Home by the Holidays: Putting Pressure on our Congresspeople to end the war; Saying Yes to Peace; and creating visuals for the actions tomorrow. In the afternoon we were visited by the Topsy Turvy bus, check it out below! We also had a CODEPINK Choir rehearsal in the front yard! At night we screened films in the Peace Room.

Caroling outside the CODEPINK House!

The Topsy Turvy Bus visits the CODEPINK House. It says that the US budget is "topsy turvy"--too much $$ going towards the Pentagon, and too little going to all the social services.

Sunday, May 13
Today CODEPINKers are at a "Public Service" fair that is happening on the Mall. There is tons of military junk there--humvees, tanks, big army trucks, and even a simulation tent where you can pretend to be in combat. Women are outside holding a banner that says "Remembering Women in Wartime" with photos of the female soldiers who have been killed in combat, and women are inside too!

This afternoon we'll have our Peace Festival in Lafayette Park in front of the White House. I'm sure we'll have tons of photos to post from this exciting family event!

Photos on this post by Zach and Rae.

Peace Potluck

By Rae Abileah

Tonight we had our second weekly peace potluck at the CODEPINK activist house. The house was full of people from around town, visiting activists, and house residents. Desiree and Lydia made some amazing dishes to share, and we decided that we want to make an activist cookbook with all our recipes for delicious dishes and savory, potent actions for cange.

Here are some photos from the evening:


After the potluck, I would have thought that everyone would be exhausted from a full day of actions, cooking, and the potluck, but a group decided to head over to the radio and television awards to see Bush's comic speech and give the senators, media, and other guests a message to get out of Iraq! The actions just don't stop here in DC!!

NOW endorses Hillary for Prez

By Rae Abileah

Today was a sad day for us as we watched one of our closest allies in the women's movement, NOW, endorse Hillary Clinton for president. We are disappointed that our sisters have chosen to support a candidate by virtue of her being a woman, and not a candidate for peace. Here are some photos from our demonstration outside the women's museum where the endorsement was announced. We asked Hillary to "help us get out of Iraq NOW!" More info about this action coming soon.

Join us in DC at the CODEPINK Activist House!

In this photo are the women who stayed at the house during the first week--they're pointing to the space in the middle and asking... will you join us?

The CODEPINK DC presence is making national (and international!) news, spreading the message that Congress should listen to the people and not buy Bush's War, and that women (and our allies) can lead the way for peace! The house has a peace room, five bedrooms, and many inspiring pink photos and banners. Join us for a long weekend, a week, or longer!

Click here to find out more about the house and apply to live here.

AFL-CIO Conference: Lieberman blows kisses to CODEPINK

CODEPINKers Desiree and Tighe were outside the AFL-CIO construction and trade conference at the DC Hilton and where they unfurled a Don't Buy Bush's War banner and chanted "No More War!". When Lieberman got out of his car he blew kisses at the CODEPINKers. Tighe talked with him about the number of deaths in this war and the reasons it must end, and how his continued support of war is not going to support our troops.

Murtha showed up and shook CODEPINK activists' hands and said, "Great job, thanks for what you're doing."

House Votes for War Funding

By Rae Abileah

Today the House passed the supplemental spending bill. Below is CODEPINK’s immediate response. We were in the basement of the Rayburn building (where many reps go to get to the underground tram to the Capitol en route to voting) with bloody hands and shirts saying “If you buy it, you own it” this morning. We had many interesting interactions with reps regarding the funding. Here is our statement about the vote:

Peace Movement Disappointed With Democrat Funding for War

Determined to Stop Future Funding and Bring Our Troops Home

Today, the House of Representatives passed the "Iraq Accountability Act" giving the President an additional $100 billion to continue the US occupation and associated military operations in Iraq. While this binding measure establishes a deadline for the removal of most combat troops by August 31, 2008, the conditions set forth in the bill fall far short of where Congress should be on its path to bringing the troops home. CODEPINK believes that not one more dollar should be appropriated for continued war and occupation, and will continue to push the position that Congress should only fund the safe, orderly and rapid withdrawal of all troops by the end of this year.

CODEPINK will continue to demand that Congress be accountable to the American people’s clarion call last November 7 to end the war. Despite many expert opinions that say that the US priority in Iraq must be to support political and diplomatic solutions rather than military operations, we are still burdened with an exclusively military strategy and additional funding for war and occupation.

Members of Congress who voted for the supplemental bill see it as the first small step toward the major policy shift we seek. The work of the peace movement, and particularly that of CODEPINK, has been instrumental in moving us closer to our goal to end the war. Speaker Pelosi, talking to the Democratic Caucus on the eve of the vote, mentioned the pressure she was getting from CODEPINK camping out on her doorstep! Congress has moved this far only because of public pressure, and to reach further public pressure must and will continue. CODEPINK will now press for the best supplemental bill possible out of the Senate, the best bill possible out of Conference, and the best bill possible from the Defense Authorization that will be coming up in April. CODEPINK continues to fight for better funding legislation that will finally and completely end the US military presence in Iraq.

Meet with your Congresspeople during the Congressional Recess April 2-16!

Four Activists Arrested at Pelosi's

By Rae Abileah

Activists say “if Pelosi buys the war, she owns the war”

As the house began to debate the $100 billion Supplemental Bill on the floor of the Capitol this afternoon, four CODEPINKers were arrested taking over Speaker Pelosi’s office. As they held up images of the American soldiers killed this month in Iraq and chanted “stop funding the war,” police moved in and arrested four CODEPINK representatives: Eve Tetaz from DC, Desiree Fairooz from Arlington, Texas, Janine Bonaparte from Marin, CA, and David Barrows also from DC.

In her statement Medea Benjamin said: “If Pelosi—who was given a mandate for peace in the November election—buys this war, she owns this war. And what she owns is 3228 American soldiers killed, and those soldiers, those sons who will be killed as the war rages on.”

During the action at Pelosi's office, we held up banners that read "Pelosi, be a leader for peace" and "Pelosi, Don't Buy Bush's War". We also had a large banner with a donkey that said "Pin the War on the Donkey" and tails reading "War" "Torture" "War Profiteering" and more.

At one point, while we were speaking with the abundant crowd of reporters, we held up photos of soldiers who have been killed in the war, attached with a string. A police officer immediately snatched the photos and said they were a banner and not allowed in. We said that these were not a banner, these were the faces of the dead. Even the press looked horrified and snapped some photos of the ordeal. After putting away the pictures, we took out a newspaper with the faces of the dead printed in color and held it up. And we started crying. Not fake wailing. Not shouting. Just crying. Tears and tears and we couldn't help it, and I couldn't help it. And instead of reporters asking "Why are you here protesting?" or "What are you doing here today?" they asked me "Why are you crying?" And this is what I said:

I am crying because the Democrats' support of another $100 billion for the war means that thousands more kids my age will be killed--kid soldiers and Iraqi kids. Pelosi's support of Bush's request for money for war is a death sentence for thousands of kids. After weeks of cute, colorful, passionate actions in the halls of Congress, from caroling with the choir to valentine delivery to dog bones for Blue Dogs to pink aprons and brooms cleaning House, today was an action of a different tenor. I felt like the floodgates had come down and the halls of Congress were gushing with a bloody river. Maybe it sounds dramatic. But it felt like we were drowning in tears, in pain, in the realization of something very, very wrong. And the tragic part was that the two secretaries in Pelosi's office sat there chuckling and picking up phones, and the press liaison came out and answered reporter's questions with a blank face. My heart was pounding so loudly that I wondered why it didn't just crack the walls of the marble building. Those walls felt more sturdy and guarded than usual. How have our Democratic leaders become so enchanted by the Republican language? Pelosi has helped them back into a corner where Bush will emerge victorious. And the tragic thing is that they will tout this as a victory if it passes tomorrow.

I visited Anna Eshoo's office after the action, and her press secretary tried to explain to me why Anna is going to vote for this supplemental. He gave me the analogy of a football game, where one must work strategically one play at a time to get the ball up the field to the goal. Here's why I think that's a bogus comparison: The compromise that Pelosi and the Dems are voting for is not one step towards peace; it is one step towards prolonging violence and destruction, and killing innocent lives for nothing. The press liaison listened patiently to my opinion, and then told me that we have the same goal, just different tactics. But I am quite certain now that we don't have the same goal. The Democrats want to win. I want to see the killing stop. I want to welcome our soldiers home with open arms and fully equipped medical services. I want to see justice done to the administration. The Democrats, well, they want to win--this vote, the election in '08, the power. If Pelosi would have just come out and said, "Look, I know that this bill (or ammendment like Lee's) may fail, but I am going to take this stand because I believe in the courage of my convictions, because I am more committed to the will of my constituents and the integrity of justice." But we'll never get to find out what Dems would have done if the supplemental had been straight with Bush's desires. And now it's a mess.

Today there is a deep sorrow. Tomorrow there is a vote. Then, we will keep on working for peace...

Church of Stop Shopping goes to Congress!

By Rae Abileah

Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping joined CODEPINK in the halls and offices of the House and Senate buildings today! We had a lively revival preaching and singing to Congress to stop shopping for war. Highlights included caroling in front of Gore's press conference after his hearing on climate change in the House, at Hillary's office, and at Reid's office. We also visited Feingold's office, where Billy talked about being an alumn from UW, and sang a thank you song to the legislative aides, for the great work the office is doing to bring our troops home. We also sang outside Obama's.

Here are some great photos from the day:

The Church of Stop Shopping performs in front of the Supreme Court en route to the Senate.

Preachin' in Reid's office.

The Choir exits Rayburn House building with a song.

Singing in the Cannon building rotunda.
Photos by Rae. Top photo of Rev. Billy by Liz.

Disrupting Hill and Bill Fundraiser

By Rae Abileah

Tonight we were inside and outside Hillary's $1,000 a plate fundraising dinner at the Marriott hotel in Woodley Park, the very same hotel where George W had his Black Tie and Boots inaugural ball in January, 2005, where we were inside disrupting as well! The speech and the applause by the audience was altogether disgusting. Hillary, why can't you put your money where your mouth is and take action NOW to end the Iraq war, not if elected president!

Here's Midge Potts and Patricia Foulkrod interviewed by Liz Kimmerly about the Hillary protest, and some footage from the inside action:



Want to know more about the Listen Hillary birddogging campaign and how YOU can get involved? Check out www.listenhillary.org!

4 Years of War: Staged Occupation and Blue Dogs

By Rae Abileah


Today we mourn 4 years since the US invaded Iraq. We met up with Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) at Union Station where they staged a street theater occupation of the city, grabbing (planted) civilians and taking them hostage. It was a jolting action to witness. But the reality is that these soldiers have done it in Iraq, and violent hold ups are the norm in many cities in this country.

We attended the 4th anniversary press conference that Military Families Speak Out and IVAW held outside the Cannon House of Reps building, and held our Don't Buy Bush's War banners up for all to see. We paraded our shopping carts full of war objects, and sung "Can't Buy Me War." We tried to take those carts inside, but security just wouldn't have it.

We went into Congress and visited the offices of the Blue Dog Democrats who are campaigning to reduce the national debt. Each blue dog has a big poster mounted on an easel outside his/her office with the national debt and the taxpayer's individual share of the debt (about $30,000 currently). We carried in the poster, asked to speak with the chief of staff, and sang a little song for them (to the tune of "This Old Man"):

These Blue Dogs, they're upset,
They don't want a bigger debt.
So CODEPINK is here to give this dog a bone;
Stop funding war; bring our troops home!

At the end of the song we held out milkbones with stop funding messages written on in perm. marker, and tied with a pink ribbon. Each blue dog rep we visited received a bone and the jingle with applause and appreciation, thus proving that speaking the language of the targeted audience is a surefire way to get the point across! Who knew that these blue dogs loved pink?

We went to a MoveOn 4th Anniversary candle light vigil in the evening and brought our stop funding war message there. To read more about MoveOn and the critical eye the anti-war movement is casting their way, click here. Check out this great photo of Barbara and her MoveOn t-shirt:

In the evening there was an anti-war art event at Bus Boys and Poets. May art prevail over war!

ANSWER March to the Pentagon

By Rae Abileah

Today we marched about two miles to the Pentagon with a coalition of anti-war groups led by ANSWER. It was a chilly day that turned to snow by the end. Our CODEPINK contingent marched from our women's convergence spot through a gauntlet of counter-protesters who chanted "USA" and told us we were unAmerican, traitors, lesbians, etc. I didn't find them very intimidating--they looked fearful and angry, and we were calm and peaceful, singing over and over "All we are saying is give peace a chance!" We were so joyously pink and feminine, it felt very safe to walk down the streets. Still, the counter-protesters were agresive and though I can respect their right to demonstrate, just as we can, in permitted locations, they attempted to block us on the sidewalk. The police had to intervene to ensure that we were able to walk down the street. The one shout I still can't figure out is "our soldiers are over there protecting your rights to freedom." First of all, if they're protecting our rights to free speech, then why not let us use those rights? Secondly, the war in Iraq is making us less safe at home. And last, why not ask the soldiers what they think they're over there for--many of them honestly say it's for the oil, and aren't duped by Bush's rhetoric.

CODEPINK marches through an angry crowd of counter-protesters.
Thanks to Isis and Liz for the photos in this post.

After the march when we returned to our cars, we found that one CODEPINKer's car had 2 tires slashed. Now you tell me, what's so peaceful and non-disruptive about that? I can't believe that these counter-protesters would stoop to such low and violent reactions... but I must believe it, as I spent several hours waiting for the tow truck. This nasty, cruel behavior seems to be all to symptomatic of those who believe in the war, believe in violence and military solutions as the only way to solve problems.

After being out in the cold all day, we returned home to hot soup and good company. Another day, another march for peace. Are they listening?