[act-ma] 3/26 4,000th death commemoration

[Stop the Wars Coalition]

Stop the Wars encourages you to participate in this.

*United for Justice with Peace*

*2161 Massachusetts Ave.** Cambridge MA***


*_Media Advisory_*


Date: March 24, 2008

Contact: Paul Shannon, American Friends Service Committee: 617-497-5273 
or 617-623-5288

-- Photo and Interview Opportunities --

*4,000^th U.S. soldier killed in Iraq*

Boston area military families and residents gather on Tuesday, March 25

to commemorate another tragic milestone in the Iraq War

 
*_Who:_* United for Justice with Peace Coalition

*_Where:_* Boston Common at Park Street station

*_When:_* Tuesday, March 25  5:00 pm to 6:00 pm

*_What:_* Public Commemoration of the 4,000^th U.S. death in Iraq. (At 
the event members of the Massachusetts chapter of Military Families 
Speak Out will collect new winter clothing to donate to homeless 
veterans in the Boston area.)

The press is referred to www.ivaw.org <http://www.ivaw.org/> to hear the 
testimony of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans at the March 15 Winter 
Soldier Hearings about the true cost of the war for both our soldiers 
and Iraqi and Afghan civilians. (Iraq Veterans Against the War: 
215-498-3347)

*_Statements by local area contacts:_*

/Liam Madden is a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran who served as a Sergeant 
with the 31^st Marine Expeditionary Unit in Haditha, Iraq from September 
2004 to February 2005/.

"Today the US government's occupation of Iraq claimed the 4,000th of our 
brothers and sisters, today another family has been destroyed as a 
consequence of the lies and betrayal we have endured. This is a day of 
grief, as everyday of the last five years have been. Our responsibility 
to those who can no longer speak in protest is to carry their voices 
into the heart of America's public consciousness." Available for press 
calls: 703-408-3626

/Anne Chay from Andover has a son serving in the Army who recently 
returned from Iraq/.

"I feel sick and sad hearing the news of the 4,000th U.S. combat death 
in Iraq. As the mother of a soldier who served a fifteen month tour in 
Iraq and may soon be recalled, I am seeing that more and more the burden 
of this war is falling on a very few courageous young people who are 
being sent back to Iraq again and again.  Despite so much death, despite 
such public outcry, the best our political leaders are offering is a set 
of vague promises that once a new President is inaugurated we might be 
able to slowly withdraw some of our troops from Iraq. That's not good 
enough -- we need them to act now to bring all of our troops home 
quickly and safely." Anne is available for press calls at 978-376-7584

/Susan Lees is on the coordinating committee of United for Justice with 
Peace/.

"We had hoped to stop this war before the 4000th US service person dead 
had been reached.  4000 dead is important – but it is only the tip of 
the iceberg in terms of the terrible impact this war is having on our 
society. There are more than 40,000 service people wounded, their 
families are overwhelmed.  And the Iraq veterans the War testified last 
week in Silver Spring Maryland to their on-the-ground experiences in 
Iraq and Afghanistan – and are visibly suffering from the brutal and 
deadly acts which they have seen and committed, and from our loss of any 
moral center.  This is a brutal occupation in Iraq; not a helping hand! 
It is hugely important to get their story out in the media, and in 
Congress. They are asking to testify in Congressional hearings.

"Iraq is devastated.  There are over a million dead.  One half of the 
entire Iraqi population is in need of emergency care, displaced, wounded 
or dead.  Much of their infrastructure is destroyed. We need to Bring 
our Troops home now – not allow a long term occupation, as the Bush 
administration is pushing for. And we need to stop an attack on Iran." 
Susan is available for press calls at 781-316-1618

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Suren Moodliar
Telephones: 617-482-6300 (wk); 617-482-7300 (fax); 617-968-0880 (cell)
Projects: encuentro 5 & fair employment
Address: 33 Harrison Ave, 5th floor, Boston, MA 02111
Websites: www.massglobalaction.org <http://www.massglobalaction.org>; 
www.fairjobs.org <http://www.fairjobs.org>; www.encuentro5.org 
<http://www.encuentro5.org>

Visit: www.reclaimingtheivorytower.org 
<http://www.reclaimingtheivorytower.org> for a handbook on organizing 
and strategizing!