Women Leading Grassroots Movement in Italy to Oppose U.S. Military Base Travel to DC

One of the largest protests against the U.S. military this year wasn't where you'd normally expect it. In February, more than one hundred thousand people marched against a plan to double the size of a U.S. base in the northern Italian city of Vicenza. Over twenty seven hundred US forces are already based there. Critics of the plan say the base will be used as a staging post for the U.S. military to attack Iraq and Afghanistan. Opposition grew so high that it helped bring the brief collapse of the government of Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi within days of the protest.

The protests against the Vicenza base are known in Italy as No Dal Molin. They've been led mostly by women who have collected thousands of signatures, organized meetings and raised awareness to turn a local cause into a national movement. This week, a group of these women have traveled from Italy to bring their case directly to Capitol Hill.

Two of the delegation's members join us from Washington, DC:

* Thea Gardellin, one of the founding members of No Dal Molin, the movement against the Vicenza base.
* Stephanie Westbrook, American citizen living in Rome. Member of U.S. Citizens for Peace and Justice in Italy.

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http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/05/02/1427223