Dear Friends,
We had very energized peaceful resistance actions in Wisconsin over the past two days. Lots of people participated and we got lots of good coverage, listed below. All of our Declaration actions focussed on Senator Kohl, urging him to sign on to the Declaration & the Harkin bill.
There were arrests at Kohl’s office in Milwaukee, and we occupied his office in Madison for 27 hours (they brought in federal marshals as we slept there overnight, then continued vigiling today), and activists in Eau Claire, La Crosse, and Appleton went to his offices too. In Madison about 20 core people participated for the 27 hours. We disrupted business as usual and risked arrest by reading names of the dead in Kohl’s office through the day. Some fasted for 26 hours. 50+ came to the candlelight vigil last night. We leafleted outside the office which is in a heavy pedestrian area on our state capital square. Many passersby took time to write to the senator (52 comment cards were written just today).
Below are links to some of the coverage.
Thanks to everyone for the work around the country so far, and the work to come next week!
Janet Parker, Joy First, and Steve Burns Madison, WI 608-257-2748
2 Wisconsin Public Radio stories Thursday about actions in Milwaukee and Madison:
Text of one story is below.
- Listen to “Arrests In Milwaukee Peace Protests 09/22/06 [1]”
- “Rally Held Pressuring Senator Kohl 09/22/06 [2]”
Big photo on front page of the local section today and summary caption in The Capital Times. Also an editorial there today congratulating our many state legislators who signed on to the Declaration during a press conference earlier this week.
- Front page, above the fold story, yesterday in Wisconsin State Journal [3] about Joy and other civil resisters in Wisconsin: (you can click on “virtual newsprint to see the photo etc
We did live interviews from Kohl’s office on our listener sponsored WORT radio last night and this morning, and an interview this morning on our local Air America affiliate too.
- Letter to the editor by Joy First in advance of the action [4]
- And another [5]
Wisconsin Public Radio story: Rally Held Pressuring Senator Kohl
By Brian Bull
Friday, September 22, 2006
(MADISON) In Madison yesterday, peace activists gathered outside Senator Herb Kohl’s office, to launch a 27-hour “Fast for Peace.”
About 15 people stood on the sidewalk, reading the names of the sixty Wisconsin soldiers who’ve died so far in the Iraq war. Organizers, including Janet Parker of the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, say Senator Kohl has been “recalcitrant” in taking a stance on the conflict. She says the group wants Senator Kohl to represent the people of Wisconsin, who overwhelmingly want to see the troops home by the end of the year. She says Iraqi citizens also believe that it’s time for the occupation to end. She says they want Senator Kohl to take a stand by signing on to legislation to bring the troops home.
The fast and a candlelight vigil is among 400 other national events planned this week to commemorate International Peace Day.
Kohl’s office has issued a statement saying the Democratic Senator has been critical of President Bush’s handling of the war, and that he supports a resolution stating to the Iraqi government that U.S. troops will not be there indefinitely.
On Thursday, police arrested four people who were blocking traffic outside of Kohl’s Milwaukee office in an act of civil disobedience.