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<font size=3><br>
</font><font face="Courier New, Courier" size=2><b><For wide
distribution><br><br>
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</font><font face="Courier New, Courier" size=2><b>Background:</b> A call
to mobilize against colonial occupations on March 20th, 2004, was issued
and endorsed by a large nationwide coalition of organizations and
communities that included the A.N.S.W.E.R Coalition; Al-Awda, the
Palestine Right to Return Coalition; the National Lawyers Guild; the Arab
Muslim American Federation; the Free Palestine Alliance-USA; the Muslim
American Society Freedom Foundation; and the Muslim Student Association
of the U.S. and Canada. The National Council of Arab Americans
(NCAA) supported this call in full. <br><br>
<br><br>
The call to mobilize demanded ending "all colonial occupations from
Iraq to Palestine to everywhere". It also called for
"bringing the troops home NOW" without delay, and for opposing
giving an international cover to the colonial occupation of
Iraq.<br><br>
<br><br>
Some sectors in the anti-war movement objected to and are organizing
against these demands, insisting that Palestine be dropped from the call
for March 20 (as these same sectors have often demanded), and that
internationalizing the occupation of Iraq should remain a viable
option.<br><br>
<br><br>
As a result, and in the context of a long history of being silenced and
marginalized, the Arab-American and Muslim community prepared this open
letter to the movement.<br><br>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<b>An Open Letter from the Arab-American and Muslim Community to the US
Anti-War Movement<br><br>
</b> <br><br>
Dear peace and justice organizations and activists,<br><br>
<br><br>
On March 20, 2004, the world will mobilize against war and colonial
occupations. The significance of this historic day is evident to
all and requires no further elaboration. The political clarity and
character of this mobilization in the US, however, remains
illusive. <br><br>
<br><br>
This is where our community stands:<br><br>
<br><br>
In confronting war, the people of Palestine and Iraq have paid
dearly. They stand against the imperial project shoulder to
shoulder with communities of color and the working class in the United
States, along with great many subjugated peoples around the globe - from
Afghanistan to Colombia, and from the Philippines to Vieques, and
on. Without a doubt, the Palestinian and Iraqi people are both
welded together in an inextricable unity at the forefront of the global
anti-war movement, transforming themselves as a whole as its embodiment
and paying in its defense with the dearest of all - their very
existence. Yet, despite every home destroyed, child murdered, acre
confiscated and tree uprooted, town colonized and ethnically cleansed,
wall built, refugee remaining nation-less, and incremental robbery of
their self-determination, they remain the very antithetical formulation
of empire and with a vision of justice for all.<br><br>
<br><br>
In the United States, we, Arab-Americans and Muslims have been
maliciously targeted, stripped of our rights, and positioned outside the
constitutional framework of this country. A new COINTELPRO has been
unleashed against our homes and living rooms, as our fathers, mothers,
sons, and daughters are plucked away and thrown into unknown prison
cells. Thus, in a continuum of history, we stand with African
Americans, Japanese Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and all others
in the painful struggle for justice. From them all, we take
our cue, for they are our predecessors and our partners in this long
march.<br><br>
<br><br>
Accordingly, we the undersigned hereby declare that:<br><br>
<br><br>
1. We do not accept delinking the struggle of the Palestinian people from
the anti-war movement, and regard the struggle in Palestine, as it is
viewed worldwide, to be central to any peace and justice
mobilization.<br><br>
<br><br>
2. We insist that the Palestinian right to return and to
self-determination are the key anchors of the Palestinian struggle, and
that organizations that attempt to diminish, sidetrack, or abrogate these
rights, regardless of any other position they may take on Palestine, are
acting contrary to the will and aspiration of the Palestinian
people.<br><br>
<br><br>
3. We view all attempts to relegate our collective presence to the margin
and to tokenize our participation in the movement to be racist in
character. In its attempt to silence the Arab and Muslim voices for
decades, particularly that of the Palestinian people, the movement in the
US has stood alone in the global movement for justice. We see
ourselves as full partners in leading the movement as signified in the
heavy price we continue to pay along the way, and reject any attempt to
objectify our presence.<br><br>
<br><br>
4. We regard the positions that the "colonial occupation of Iraq
must be internationalized", or that ending the occupation must be
conducted over a period of time until the "Iraqis are able to secure
their democracy", as implicitly colonial and racist. These are
positions that are rooted in the construct of "manifest
destiny" and the "white man's burden" to
"civilize".<br><br>
<br><br>
5. We call on our people everywhere to hold all organizations accountable
to the positions they take, especially those that depict racist attitudes
towards us, implicitly or otherwise, particularly those that tokenize and
objectify our struggle. Any organization or movement that finds it
acceptable to minimize or disregard for political expediency the struggle
of any people should not be allowed to function within the global justice
movement. Justice is neither selective, nor partial or
conditional.<br><br>
<br><br>
We are firm on these principles for the March 20th mobilization and
beyond as we call on all communities and organizations to mobilize and
stand in force under the following unifying five slogans:<br><br>
<br><br>
1. End all colonial occupations from Iraq to Palestine to everywhere!
<br><br>
2. Bring the troops home NOW! <br><br>
3. No to internationalizing colonial occupations! <br><br>
4. Stop the attacks on civil liberties! <br><br>
5. Money for jobs, education, and healthcare not for war!<br><br>
<br><br>
As we salute and stand empowered with sectors of the movement that have
taken a principled stand on justice, we seek to participate in the
empowerment of all as we call for a genuine global united front against
war.<br><br>
<br><br>
<b>All out on March 20, 2004!<br><br>
</b> <br><br>
(List in alphabetical order. To be included, please write to:
rashmawi@sbcglobal.net)<br><br>
<br><br>
1. Al-Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition<br><br>
2. Al-Bireh Palestine Society, California Chapter<br><br>
3. Al-Qalam Institute<br><br>
4. American Muslims for Jerusalem (AMJ)<br><br>
5. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Greater Sacramento Area
Chapter<br><br>
6. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, New Jersey
Chapter<br><br>
7. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Seattle Chapter<br><br>
8. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Los Angeles/Orange County
Chapter<br><br>
9. American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, San Francisco Bay Area
Chapter<br><br>
10. Arab Muslim American Federation<br><br>
11. Arab-American Community Center, Chicago<br><br>
12. Arab-American Forum, New Hampshire<br><br>
13. Arab-American Press Guild<br><br>
14. San Francisco Bay Area Palestine Coalition<br><br>
15. Canada-Palestine Association<br><br>
16. Canada-Palestine Friendship Society<br><br>
17. Canadian Arab Federation<br><br>
18. Committee for Democratic Palestine - Canada<br><br>
19. Committee for Justice - USA<br><br>
20. Deir Yassin Society of New York<br><br>
21. Free Palestine Alliance - USA (FPA)<br><br>
22. Friends of Ghassan Kanafani, Toronto Chapter<br><br>
23. Kana'an Review<br><br>
24. Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation (MAS Freedom
Foundation)<br><br>
25. Muslim Students Association of the U.S. and Canada
(MSA-National)<br><br>
26. Muslim Students Association, California State University,
Sacramento<br><br>
27. National Council of Arab Americans (NCAA)<br><br>
28. Palestine House Educational and Cultural Center, Canada<br><br>
29. Palestine Right of Return Congress - USA<br><br>
30. Palestine Solidarity Committee - Los Angeles<br><br>
31. Palestine Solidarity Committee - Seattle<br><br>
32. Palestine Solidarity Group - Chicago<br><br>
33. Palestinian American Women's Association (PAWA)<br><br>
34. Sacred Roots<br><br>
35. Students for Justice in Palestine, California State University,
Sacramento<br><br>
36. Students for Justice in Palestine, University of California,
Davis<br><br>
37. The Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP)<br><br>
38. The United Muslim Association of High Schools Club<br><br>
<br><br>
<br>
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<br><br>
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