Gandhi Peace Brigade/ Jes, Leslie and Martha go to the DNC

Dear Friends,

Leslie and I attended my son's wedding in Hawaii last month. It was magical. We stayed for two weeks and gave our Peace with Iran presentation in Hilo and Honolulu. Here's a write-up from the Big Island Weekly: http://www.bigislandweekly.com/articles/2008/08/13/read/news/news03.txt

We returned home to San Francisco and after just a few days we decided to join CodePink at the Democratic National Convention. My car was starting to complain about all the cross country trips, so we reserved a rental, convinced Martha Hubert to join us, which wasn't hard, and away we went on our 18 hour road trip to Denver.

Around 2:00 a.m. a coyote emerged from the darkness and dashed across the road. I thought he was safe, but he doubled back. There was nothing I could do. The impact damaged the car, so we were stranded for the night in Elko, Nevada. We missed the first day of the convention, when the Denver police used pepper-spray and arrested 100 peaceful protesters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=govYC3eEbvA&feature=related. Alicia, our CodePink sister and friend, was assaulted by an out-of-control cop: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfISlq1gzK8

By the time we arrived, the police must have realized they had over-reacted, because they were much less aggressive. They enjoyed swaggering defiantly down the street in their brand new "RoboCop" outfits, but they also did their best to exchange niceties with the crowd. They tried not to show it, but it was obvious they enjoyed CodePink's presence.

The Iraq Veterans Against the War http://ivaw.org/ led a massive march toward the convention center. They wanted to meet with Obama, or his representative, and they were willing to risk arrest to do it. Eventually their demands were met and they felt heard.

One of the highlights for Leslie and me was a magnificent tent, shaped like a mosque, constructed from photos of Iran: http://picturesofyouiran.blogspot.com/2007/12/manjushri-project.html. The artist and his wife have traveled to Iran on three occasions and they are as ardent as we are when it comes to informing people about Iran. The exhibit will be traveling throughout the United States in 2008-2009. If you would like to see it in your town, please email Tom Loughlin at the website above.

We decided not to go to the Republican National Convention. This wasn't an easy decision, but we needed to get back because Leslie and Martha were flying to DC. Thank you Medea and Jodie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDT--mx7gkQ, Liz and Nancy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAA_xw4v1nM for being there and for speaking truth to power. The police were much more aggressive at the RNC and over 800 people were arrested. Amy Goodman was one of them: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/09/01/democracy_now_host_and_produce.html

Tomorrow is the Axis of Friendship Festival http://www.axisoffriendship.org/ Friday, September 12 from 3:30-6:30 pm at the Civic Center Plaza in San Francisco. Join us for food, music, poetry, and cultural sharing. Find out more about this event by going here: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/09/10/us_iran_and_the_axis_of_friendship/

Peace and Freedom,
Jes & Leslie

See our Peace with Iran slideshow: http://flickr.com/photos/codepinkalert/sets/72157607234561885/show/

PS We have a short video piece we'll be showing on our Peace with Iran cross-country tour. It needs a few finishing touches, so we're looking for an editor. If you're the person we're looking for, or you know someone who might be able to help, please get in touch. Thanks!

Stop a War on Iran, September 27
http://www.stopwaroniran.org/sept272008volorgcent.shtml

Palin's Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/03/us/politics/03wasilla.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Women Against Sarah Palin
http://womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com/

Ads Pushing Iran Strike Show Denver Under Missile Attack from Boulder
http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Ads_pushing_Iran_strike_show_Denver_0829.html

International Jewish Statement Against An Attack on Iran
http://www.thestruggle.org/jews_iran_8_15_08.htm


Jes & Leslie ... A Journey for Peace and Freedom: http://www.jfpf.org/

If you would like to be added to The Gandhi Peace Brigade Group List,
please let me know: jes_richardson [at] yahoo.com Thank you. Jes