Join Stop War on Iran for a special forum and discussion
Saturday, August 1
4:00 PM
at the
Solidarity Center
55 W. 17th St. 5th Fl. in Manhattan btw. 5th and 6th Avenues
Subway: F or V to 14 Street; 1, 2, 3 to 14 St. and 7th Ave., 4,5,6, R, Q, N to
Union Square.
Stop War on Iran says: Clarity needed
NO to U.S./Israeli Intervention in Iran!
Boycott the Phony State Department/NED pro-war events on July 25
The ongoing crisis in Iran following the recent presidential elections has been
a source of much misunderstanding and confusion in antiwar and progressive
organizations, particularly in the United States. In the face of ongoing
threats of military action against Iran, especially recent remarks by Vice
President Joe Biden that gave a green light for an Israeli attack and this
week's visit by U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to Israel, the
antiwar movement must be clear in its opposition to any attack, or to the
propaganda used to justify such an attack.
Here are some points to consider:
Democracy? If the protests were progressive, why
did all the corporate politicians and media outlets in the United States and
Europe support them? The United States government has never been
interested in democracy for the people of Iran, and was a key player in the
overthrow of the democratically elected President Mossadegh in 1953. This
coup installed the brutal regime of the shah, which was funded and armed by the
U.S.
Elections? The U.S.-based corporate media
attacked the Iranian elections as fraudulent, even though the results matched
those of polls taken before the election. Washington’s hypocrisy is
particularly striking, since the U.S. refused to recognize the elections in
Palestine that brought Hamas into office, and has worked to crush the Hamas
government.
The Role of the Corporate Media. Why is it that
the corporate media provided round-the-clock coverage of the protests in Iran,
but was virtually silent about the coup in Honduras? Did these stations
ever give even a fraction of this much coverage to the protests against the war
in Iraq, even when hundreds of thousands of people marched?
“Humanitarian” Cover for War
Propaganda. Shortly after Vice President Biden’s
statements giving Israel the green light for an attack on Iran, a website
campaign called "United 4 Iran" suddenly appeared, calling for
protests against the Iranian government on July 25. A close look at
United 4 Iran reveals that groups set up to advance U.S. foreign policy, like
the National Endowment for Democracy and the International Republican Institute
fund the organizations behind this campaign. (These same groups have been
linked to the coup in Honduras and the attempted coup in Venezuela.)
Participants in Saturday's Forum will include:
- Ardeshir Ommani, co-founder of the American-Iranian Friendship
Committee;
- Sara Flounders, co-director of the International Action Center;
- John Catalinotto,International Action Center;
- Phil Wilayto, Campaign Against Sanctions & Military Intervention in
Iran;
- Manijeh Saba, an Iranian human rights and women's rights activist;
- Dustin Langley, a Navy Veteran and organizer with the Stop War on Iran
Campaign
- for more information: 212-633-6646
Additional Resources:
Some
observations on the Iranian presidential election and its aftermath By Phil
Wilayto
Who
killed Neda Agha-Soltan?
Behind the
turmoil in Iran By John Catalinotto
U.S. Hands
off Iran: Goading Iran Election -- What fraud? By John Catalinotto
Riding the
"Green Wave" at the Campaign for Peace and Democracy and
Beyond
Commentary
on Iran: Ten tumultuous days by Ardeshir Ommani
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=726427&content=songinfo&songID=7838251:
Interview on Unusual Sources: Dustin Langley, an organizer with the
Stop War on Iran Campaign, suggests that some activists are in danger of
becoming left-wing cover for an intervention against Iran.
