As the new Democratic majority started its first day in
Congress, with no plans to end the war, repeal the Military Commissions Act or
Patriot Act, and numerous declarations that “impeachment is off the
table”, hundreds of people came to Washington
DC to demand that Bush be
impeached for war crimes. From a rally and
march outside the Capitol building, to an evening program at the National Press
Club entitled “Voices for Impeachment” featuring Daniel Ellsberg,
Cindy Sheehan, John Nichols, Michael Ratner & Sunsara Taylor, to a disruption
of Rham Emanuel’s press conference on “ethics reform” by anti-war
protesters, hundreds of people made clear their determination not to sit by and
allow the Bush regime to continue its crimes with the complicity of Congress.
Click below for the following reports:
The Stench of “Politics As Usual” . . .And The Anger From Below: Report By Sunsara Taylor
Hundreds Outside the Capitol Rally & March to Demand Bush’s Impeachment
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Must Read Articles on Impeachment: Daring to Change Minds & Move Millions: The Case for Impeachment Now by Sunsara Taylor Why Demand Impeachment Now? by Debra Sweet |
FOX’s The O’Reilly Factor Interviews Sunsara Taylor of World Can’t Wait
Anti-War Protesters Disrupt Rahm Emanuel’s Press Conference
1,200 in San Francisco Spell Out “IMPEACH” on the Beach
Read the Call for the Jan. 4 Protest
Hundreds Outside the Capitol Demand Impeachment as Congress Opens
|
 Rev. Lennox Yearwood  Cindy Sheehan
 Sunsara Taylor  |
(Scroll down for videos of the march)
Washington, DC, 1/4/07: As the new Democratic majority started its
first day in Congress, with no plans to end the war, repeal the
Military Commissions Act or Patriot Act, and numerous declarations that
“impeachment is off the table”, real oppostion to the Bush regime took
place outside the Capitol building.
Close to 400 people rallied outside in a protest demanding “BUSH MUST
GO: If war crimes, torture, and crimes against humanity are not reason
to impeach, what is?” The rally put a clear demand before the new
Congress and a challenge to the American people: that the Bush regime
cannot be allowed to stay in office and commit further crimes.
Speakers at the rally reflected a diverse array of views united in the
the demand to impeach Bush for war crimes, and included: Anita Anderson-Dennis, the mother of Darrell Anderson, Iraq War Veteran/Resister; Elaine Brower, World Can’t Wait; Steve Cramer, co-chair, Green Party of the United States; Wayne Lum, United For Lt. Watada; Captain Ron Fisher, United States Navy (Retired); Paul Magno, Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition; Ray McGovern; Statement sent from Cynthia McKinney; Kalonji Olusegun, Vice President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika; Andy Shallal, Iraqi Voices for Peace; Cindy Sheehan, Gold Star Families for Peace; David Swanson, After Downing Street; Sunsara Taylor, World Can’t Wait Advisory Board and writer for Revolution newspaper; Joan Stallard, Code Pink; Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Hip Hop Caucus; Christine Yorty, new Steering Committee member of UFPJ; and Kevin Zeese, Democracy Rising.
Over 50 people at the rally wore orange jumpsuits and
black hoods to represent the detainees held indefinitely and tortured
at Guantanamo Bay, which Congress made legal with the Military
Commissions Act this past fall. A march took off down the sidewalk and
around various government buildings, with a chain of people in orange
jumpsuits each holding a giant letter spelling out “THE WORLD CAN’T
WAIT – DRIVE OUT THE BUSH REGIME”. This got the attention of everyone
it passed, from government employees, cab drivers waving in support, to
all manner of DC police.
This rally was exactly the right way to start the new year – refusing
to allow passivity to set in after a Democratic victory that only promises
to let the Bush regime continue its unjust war, torture, police state
measures, moves toward theocracy, and more. Indeed, this whole
direction needs to be stopped, and it will be up to the people to do
it. The hundreds outside the Capitol need to be multiplied, quickly,
into a massive resistance that no one, including the new Congressional
leadership, can ignore.
What brought people to DC to demand Bush’s impeachment?
Those attending the rally were all drawn by a sense that they could not sit by and allow the government to carry out war crimes in their names. On the buses from New York City to DC, one young musician described the parallels between what the Bush regime is doing to Nazi Germany (the Patriot Act and the Enabling Act, scapegoating, wars of aggression, etc.), and that he can’t live in a country like that, and can’t sleep at night unless he does something to stop it. A young woman who had not been to a rally since the protests against the Republican National Convention in 2004 described how she just couldn’t continue to sit at home angry at what was going on, and had to act to stop it.
One man had who had driven from Illinois with his friend said that for the first time in his life he felt embarrassed to be an American, because people are being killed by the US for profit. Two people from Pennsylvania who had come to see their Congressman get sworn in decided their time would be better spent outside protesting to demand Bush’s impeachment.
VIDEOS FROM THE MARCH:
Video from the Rally (wmv 121megs)
