Our voices will not be silenced.
September 18 - 23
Binghamton NY
Aim. To present the legal, historical, and moral defense for civil resistance to this illegal, immoral war.
With,Ray McGovern,Ann Wright,Kathy Kelly, Medea Benjamin,Dr. Rosalie Bertell,John Bonifaz,Bill Quigley, Jimmy Massey,Camilo E. Mejia,Michael Blake
Because Judge Thomas J. McAvoy, who will preside over the St. Patrick's Four trial, stated in May that his "court offers no opinion on the war in Iraq as it is entirely irrelevant to this matter..."
Because Judge Thomas J. McAvoy admitted that even if the Iraq war was illegal, "it does not provide a justification for violating the criminal laws of the United States..."
Because Judge Thomas J. McAvoy has suggested that the four defendants will be unable to explain and defend their actions in the context of international law, which the United States Constitution allows...
And because the ministers of all wars work furiously to silence the voices of dissent, the voices of conscience, the voices of peace, the voices of victims...
We, the members of the St. Patrick's Four Support Team, have invited expert witnesses to provide, in a public court, the testimony that shall affirm the legal right to resist nonviolently this criminal act of pre-emptive aggression.
All events of the Citizens' Tribunal on Iraq are free and open to the public. Location TBA soon. All panels will begin promptly at 7 PM unless indicated otherwise.
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Sunday, September 18: "The Voices of Faith"
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Monday, September 19: "The Voices of Diplomacy"
Opening Remarks and Moderation by James Petras, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at SUNY-Binghamton. He is the author and editor of over 60 books, including the acclaimed Globalization Unmasked: Imperialism in the 21st Century. His work has been translated into 26 languages. Petras was a member of the Bertrand Russell Tribunal Against Repression in Latin America.
Ray McGovern, served 27 years as a CIA analyst and is now on the Steering Group of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity. He works for Tell the Word, the publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour.
Ann Wright resigned from the U.S. Foreign Service on March 19, 2003 to protest the invasion of Iraq, which was a violation of the United Nations charter. Ms. Wright joined the Foreign Service in 1987 and has served as Deputy Chief of Mission of U.S. Embassies in Sierra Leone, Micronesia, Mongolia, and briefly in Afghanistan. Before entering the Foreign Service, she served in the Army and has a combined regular Army/Army Reserve service time of 29 years
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Tuesday, September 20: "The Voices of Victims"
Opening Remarks and Moderation by Jim Clune, member of Zachaeus Catholic Worker house in Binghamton, New York. Jim was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War and has been a Peace Movement activist ever since. He has been involved in over 2 dozen direct actions similar to the SP4 action, and visited Iraq with Voices in the Wilderness in 1999.
Kathy Kelly helped initiate Voices in the Wilderness, a campaign to end the UN/US sanctions against Iraq. For bringing "medicine and toys" to Iraq in open violation of the UN/US sanctions, she and other campaign members were notified of a proposed $163,000 penalty for the organization, threatened with 12 years in prison, and eventually fined $20,000, a sum which they've refused to pay. Voices in the Wilderness organized 70 delegations to visit Iraq in the period between 1996 and the launch of "Shock and Awe." Kelly has been to Iraq twenty two times since January 1996, when the campaign began.
Medea Benjamin, a powerful and charismatic force in human rights activism, has struggled for social justice in Asia, Africa and the Americas for over 20 years. She is the Founding Director of the human rights organization Global Exchange. She is also the co-founder of Code Pink: Women for Peace, a women's group that has been organizing against the war in Iraq and pushing for a reorientation of budget priorities in the US to focus on heath care, education and housing, not war. In February 2003, Benjamin visited Iraq and met with weapon's inspectors, women's groups and ordinary Iraqi civilians.
Dr. Rosalie Bertell is the President of the International Institute of Concern for Public Health, and a renowned epidemiologist by profession. A member of the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart for more than fifty years, Dr. Bertell is also an expert on the health effects of low level radiation, including depleted uranium. She has received great acclaim and numerous awards, including the Right Livelihood Award (Alternative Nobel Peace Prize) in 1986.
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Wednesday, September 21: "The Voices of Justice"
John Bonifaz, a constitutional lawyer, is a co-founder of AfterDowningStreet.org, a national coalition of veterans' groups, peace groups, and public interest organizations seeking a formal congressional investigation into whether President Bush has committed impeachable offenses in connection with the Iraq war.
Bill Quigley is a law professor at Loyola University New Orleans School of Law and legal advisor to the four defendants.
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Thursday, September 22: "The Voices of Soldiers"
Jimmy Massey, a cofounder of Iraq Veterans Against the War, served twelve years of active duty in the USMC and was a platoon sergeant in the 7th Marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. After witnessing first hand the horror of war he refused to continue service, filed and won CO status, and has since been telling people the truth about the war in Iraq.
Camilo E. Mejia is former prisoner of conscience, Iraq war veteran, war resister and member of Iraq Veterans Against the War. He served nine months in confinement for refusing to return to Iraq after a two-week leave.
Michael Blake was in the U.S. Army for three and a half years. He served in Iraq from April 2003 to March 2004 and soon decided that he couldn't participate in the destruction of humanity any longer. Upon return to the U.S. he filed for conscientious objector stauts, and after seven months of processing he recieved an honorable discharge and was realeased from service. He now feels responsible for telling ordinary citizens what the war is really like and how it is being fought.
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Friday, September 23: "The Voices of Support"
A night of music, art, and celebration before we leave for Washington to join the national convergence.
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The above schedule is subject to change and please check back regularly as additional panelists are confirmed.
TRIBUNAL ADDITIONS
The photo exhibit, Faces of Iraq, will open on Monday September 19 and run through September 23, at Orazio Salati Studio & Gallery, 205 State Street (second floor).
Also, the Binghamton Independent Media Center and Traprock Peace Center will co-sponsor the screening of The Doctor, the Depleted Uranium, and the Dying Children. Details to follow soon.