SF/BAY AREA GABNET AGAINST WAR

SF/BAY AREA GABNET ACTIONS AGAINST WAR

GABRIELA Network and the Mariposa Alliance SF Bay Area joined with thousands across the Bay Area as we protested the fifth anniversary of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We mourn the loss of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Afghans as well as the almost 4000 American troops who have died as a result of this war. Our hearts particularly go out to the women- who we know bear the greatest burden and suffer the most in times of war.

In the early Wednesday morning, GABnet members hung banners across freeways declaring: WOMEN SAY NO TO WAR & US OUT OF IRAQ and AFGHANISTAN!. It's estimated that over 100,000 motorists travel these roads during the early commute. A 100 square foot "End War" banner was also installed on twin peaks in San Francisco. Later we joined students at UC Berkeley making the links between school hikes and military spending: MONEY FOR EDUCATION – NOT FOR WAR!

GABnet women joined protests in the streets and participated in civil disobedience. We linked the use of torture in Guantanamo and other secret prisons with the over one thousand extrajudicial killings of activists in the Philippines. The day ended with a spirited march in the streets. GABnet women who weren't arrested marched in a women's contingent