Top 10 Reasons to Protest During the RNC

ACTION ALERT * UNITED FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE
http://www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545
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TOP 10 REASONS TO PROTEST DURING THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION

The day before the Republican National Convention opens in New York City, the eyes
of the world will be on us as we march in opposition to the Bush administration's
policies of war, greed, hate and lies. Our message of peace and justice will be a
resounding cry: WE SAY NO TO THE BUSH AGENDA. Here are ten...actually 11... great
reasons why you should be with us on Sunday, August 29:

1. THE WAR AGAINST IRAQ. It was an illegal and immoral war waged on false pretext,
and it is still costing people’s lives every day. 10,000 innocent Iraqis and more
than 900 U.S. soldiers are dead so far, while no weapons of mass destruction or
Iraq/Al Qaeda connections were ever discovered. How many more lives must be lost
before we hold the Bush administration accountable for this disastrous policy and
all of the lies? March on August 29 to say no to the war and demand that the troops
come home now!

2. THE MILLIONS SPENT ON WAR AND GIVEN AWAY AS TAX CUTS INSTEAD OF BEING USED FOR
BASIC HUMAN NEEDS. The Iraq war has already cost us some $160 billion. At the same
time, Bush’s tax cuts will cost us more than $3 trillion by 2010, with the majority
of the benefits going to the wealthiest five percent of Americans. That’s money that
should have been spent to hire new teachers for our schools, fund HIV/AIDS
prevention and treatment programs, keep public libraries open, make sure health care
is available to all, and send working-class kids to college. March to demand new
priorities that put people’s human needs ahead of the war machine and Bush’s wealthy
friends.

3. OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD. The Bush Administration has
"unsigned" the International Criminal Court Treaty, discarded the Kyoto Protocol,
and undermined virtually every important arms control treaty the U.S. (however
reluctantly) has ever signed. And the war on Iraq alienated our allies and enraged
people all over the world. We must reject the Bush policies of permanent war, regime
change and pre-emptive strikes. March to send a message to people around the globe –
we stand with them and we want our government to cooperate with them, not dominate
them.

4. THE PATRIOT ACT. The Bush administration used the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks as a
pretext to let the police and FBI loose on innocent, law-abiding citizens. The
PATRIOT Act lets the government "sneak and peek" into your computer and secure
information without you ever knowing it; access your medical, school and library
records; tap your cell phone without permission from a judge if your home or office
phone is already bugged; monitor and take pictures of you at demonstrations, rallies
or community meetings; and detain you for up to seven days without probable cause
that you have committed a crime! March on August 29th to say this is 2004 – NOT
1984!

5. RACIAL INJUSTICE, IN ALL OF ITS FORMS. People of color and immigrants are bearing
the brunt of the war on terrorism’s domestic side. From secret detentions and
deportations of immigrants, to increased racial profiling, to cuts in social
programs alongside massive increases in military spending, the Bush administration’s
policies have expanded the scope and depth of racial injustice and violence within
the U.S. And Bush’s strategy for winning popular support for his war policies relies
upon portraying people of color within the U.S., Iraq, and elsewhere as security
threats, and their lives and rights as less valuable than that of others. March to
say NO to racism and immigrant scapegoating!

6. THE ATTACK ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND SEXUAL FREEDOM. Despite majority support for a
woman’s right to choose, the Bush administration and its rabid right-wing Christian
supporters are working with determination to return women to the times when abortion
was illegal. The attack on Lesbian/Gay/BiSexual/Transgender people has become a
centerpiece of the agenda of the far right. Lifetime judicial seats are being
appointed to ultra-conservative judges, sometimes under the radar screen via recess
appointments. Much-needed money is being shifted from safe sex and effective family
planning programs to ineffective abstinence-only education programs. Meanwhile,
women and LGBT people all over the world suffer from the impact of the Bush
administration’s policies of militarism, aggression, and Christian fundamentalism.
March for our lives!

7. HALLIBURTON. You can bet that Halliburton won't be seen during the Republican
National Convention. But they will be well represented by Vice President Dick
Cheney, who never actually stopped working for the company. Halliburton represents
everything that’s wrong with the Bush administration: war profiteering and corporate
favoritism to the extreme. March to demand that our government rescind Halliburton’s
Iraq reconstruction contracts and that Congress stop Halliburton from ripping off
both Iraqis and U.S. taxpayers.

8. THE ASSAULT ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONS AND THE THREAT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS From
“Clear Skies” to “Healthy Forests” Bush’s environmental initiatives relax the rules
for polluting corporations while leaving community health, public lands and wildlife
at risk. Across the board Bush has slashed funding for enforcement of environmental
laws and appointed his corporate cronies to environmental posts in the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and other agencies. And Bush’s support for new “usable”
nuclear weapons and backsliding on global nuclear disarmament puts the world in
danger of the ultimate environmental threat — nuclear disaster. March for a clean,
safe, and healthy world for all.

9. THE FAILED ATTEMPT TO OVERTURN MEDIA OWNERSHIP REGULATIONS. Remember when Federal
Communications Commission Chair Michael Powell (Colin Powell’s son) tried to scrap
the few media regulations that are still on the books in an effort to give yet more
TV and radio stations to companies like Clear Channel and Rupert Murdoch’s NewsCorp?
We raised hell and stopped it from happening, but we still need to fight for a media
system that supports our democratic process and encourages discussion and debate
about the most important issues of our times. March to insist that the Bush FCC
protect the people’s airwaves, which are vital to our democracy!

10. EVERYTHING ELSE. On every issue – from rolling back veterans health insurance
and over-time pay to obstructing hard-won workers’ rights, civil rights and human
rights to smaller things like the attempt to put Henry Kissinger in charge of the
Sept. 11 Commission - the Bush agenda has meant unprecedented and destructive
changes in U.S. foreign and domestic policy. March to say NO to this whole horrible
agenda!

11. BECAUSE IT’S A POWERFUL, INSPIRING, STRONG WAY TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD! Bring
signs, bring chants, bring all of your friends and family. We’re going to make a
serious political point, but we’re also going to have fun! Whatever your reasons to
protest the Bush agenda, don’t miss this opportunity to make history. March on
August 29th!

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AUGUST 29, THE WORLD SAYS NO TO THE BUSH AGENDA!
Massive Protest at the Republican National Convention, New York City
* Assemble at 10:00AM, Seventh Avenue @ 14th Street
* March steps off at noon
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Visit the RNC mobilizing section of our website for resources and to endorse the
August 29 demonstration:
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/rnc
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We need your financial support to make the August 29 protest a success:
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/donate
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To receive email updates on the August 29 RNC protest, visit:
http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email
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ACTION ALERT * UNITED FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE
http://www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545
To subscribe, visit http://www.unitedforpeace.org/email



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