SDS is calling on students to protest the escalation of the war in Afghanistan. Please join us to oppose this unjust war.
Participating chapters:
Posted in Uncategorized |
Students for a Democratic Society is calling for students across the country to protest the U.S. government’s plans for a massive escalation of the war in Afghanistan. President Obama will announce his plans next week to mobilize 30,000 to 40,000 more combat troops in Afghanistan. We must respond with protest. A majority of people in the U.S. oppose the occupation; we must make this opposition visible. Take action by holding a street protest, a film screening, a teach-in, or anything you can do to demonstrate public opposition to this unjust war.
We categorically reject U.S. wars, occupations, and bombings of the people of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq. The Afghan people have a right to self-determination, to control their own resources, and take care of their own affairs. It is not the place of the U.S. to bomb Afghanistan into submission and control its destiny. The only way for Afghanistan to be free is for the bombings to halt, and for all U.S. and NATO troops to leave the country immediately. We support the people of Afghanistan in their struggle for liberation and freedom from foreign occupation and domination.
Funding for education, not for war and occupation! U.S. out of Afghanistan and Iraq NOW!
Get in touch
Contact the SDS Antiwar Working Group if your campus is organizing, or if you’d like help in getting something going:
sdsantiwar.wg@gmail.com | https://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com
Posted in Statements | 3 Comments »
Estudiantes por una Sociedad Democrática (SDS por su siglas en ingles) hicieron un llamado a todos lo estudiantes alrededor del país para que hagas sentir sus repudio ante los planes del Gobierno norteamericano de enviar una escalada masiva de tropas para apoyar la guerra en Afganistán. Obama anunciara en la próxima semana su plan para movilizar entre 30,000 a 40,000 soldados mas para la guerra en Afganistán. Nosotros debemos responder con protesta. La gran mayoría del pueblo norteamericano se opone a la ocupación militar; nosotros debemos hacer que esa oposición sea visible, tomar acciones protestando en las calles, proyectados documentales, enseñando lo que pasa, o todo aquello que puedas hacer para demostrar oposición públicamente a esta guerra injusta.
Nosotros rechazamos categóricamente el bombardeo y las ocupaciones de los pueblos de Afganistán, Pakistán e Iraq por parte de los Estado Unidos. El pueblo Afgano tiene el derecho a auto determinarse, a tener control de sus recursos y cuidar sus propios asuntos. No es lugar de los EE.UU. bombardear Afganistán para mantener sumido y controlado su destino. La única manera de que Afganistán se libre es que se detenga los bombardeos y que todas la tropas de EE.UU. y la OTAN salga de inmediatamente del territorio Afgano. Nosotros apoyamos a pueblo Afgano en su lucha por la libertad y por su liberación de la ocupación y dominación extranjera.
¡Fondos para la educación, no para la guerra y la ocupación! ¡EE.UU. fuera de Afganistán e Iraq ahora mismo!
Spanish translation courtesy of Franiel Genao Nuñez
Posted in Uncategorized |
Demonstrations marked 8th anniversary of Afghan War–demand immediate U.S./NATO withdrawal
On Wednesday October 7, students on 26 campuses across the United States protested eight long years of war against and occupation of the people of Afghanistan. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a nation-wide student organization committed to activism for peace, justice and equality, organized the protest.
Hundreds of students marched in Washington, DC in a Funk the War event organized by DC Students for a Democratic Society. The demonstrators stormed the lobby of a building that houses Chevron, Shell, Blackwater’s lobbying group, United Technologies, and Clear Channel, demanding U.S. troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Hundreds of students joined a rally organized by DC SDS. (Photo: Jake Cunningham)
In Gainesville, Florida, 40 people rallied in the Plaza of the Americas at the University of Florida to protest the war in Afghanistan. The protesters then marched while chanting “Fund education, not occupation” and “What do we want? Peace! When do we want it? Now!” The demonstrators held a “die-in” during a class change to symbolically represent innocents killed in war. Protester Fernando Figueroa said, “What we have done today doesn’t end here. We will keep building the movement to end the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan.”
40 students rally and march at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
A spirited rally at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee saw fifty students demonstrate against the war. “We’re participating in this national day of action because the war in Afghanistan is wrong and we need the troops out now,” said Maral Safavi of Milwaukee SDS. “This war is only benefiting the rich.”
50 students rallied at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee.
In Asheville, North Carolina students shouted “Money for jobs and education, not for war and occupation!” across the quad on the University of North Carolina at Asheville. UNCA Students for a Democratic Society member Angela Denio said, “The people of Afghanistan have the right to self determination. Eight years of unjust U.S. occupation in Afghanistan has resulted in hundreds of civilian casualties, and displaced too many families that are now living in extreme suffering and poverty.”
Demonstrators at UNC-Asheville call for self-determination for the Afghan people.
A Funk the War protest by Rochester SDS that drew dozens into the streets demanding an end to the occupations and an end to militarizing schools ended violently, when almost 30 police cars interrupted the peaceful protest. Police then began shoving students and community members, threatening them with batons, and spraying them with pepper spray. The police arrested 12 protestors, 2 of whom had to go to the hospital for injuries caused by police brutality. The first person arrested by the police was the only African-American student in the vicinity, and protestors quickly called the police out on this obvious racism. This protest was part of a larger campaign by Rochester SDS to end budget cuts and demilitarize their schools.
University of Minnesota SDS held a protest of 30 students that included a skit to demonstrate the need for funding to go to education and not the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Grace Kelley of SDS linked the war to sexism in the United States, saying “It has been argued by many people, politicians, and even feminists, that the war in Afghanistan is in fact going to liberate the women of Afghanistan … How can our military forces help the women in Afghanistan overcome their own cultural oppressions when we can’t even eliminate sexism within the military itself, with one in three female veterans reporting sexual assault while in service?”
University of Houston held a teach-in with 70 people in attendance. Afghanistan war veteran Matt Dobbs spoke about his experiences in two tours of duty in Afghanistan, and how he has come to oppose the war on a civilian population that is fighting a battle of self-defense against the U.S. occupation.
70 students attend an antiwar teach-in organized by Houston SDS.
Chicago students joined a mass rally and march of hundreds against the occupation of Afghanistan. Doug Michel, a member of Chicago SDS, said, “Students from four different Chicago campuses stood up today to demand an end to the US war in Afghanistan, and we will keep speaking up until the last U.S. troop is off Afghan soil.”
And at UNC-Chapel Hill, thirty students rallied against the war, while hundreds of passers-by stopped to listen to the speeches and take antiwar literature. War veterans, community members, and students spoke out to denounce the occupation of Afghanistan and demand immediate withdrawal. The demonstration was organized by the local chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, and supported by many other campus groups.
30 students rally at UNC-Chapel Hill, while hundreds listen to the speeches.
Across the United States, dozens more campuses took part in the national day of action to protest the occupation of Afghanistan.
The October 7th protests came on the heels of the largest loss of life for U.S. occupation forces in a year. On Sunday October 4, anti-occupation fighters in Afghanistan killed nine U.S. soldiers in a series of attacks. So far, 869 U.S. troops are dead in Afghanistan since the occupation began in 2001 – with over a quarter of those killed in the past ten months alone. There are over 4,000 U.S. wounded.
U.S. and NATO occupation forces do not keep track of civilian casualties, but many estimate that U.S. air strikes and gunfire have killed tens of thousands of Afghanis. Just last month, U.S. air strikes killed over 90 Afghan civilians in the northern Afghan village of Omar Kheil. A similar strike in Farah province on May 4 this year killed 147 civilians.
U.S. Out of Afghanistan Now!
Fund Education, Not Occupation!
The SDS Anti-War Working Group exists to help coordinate national SDS anti-war activity. More information, reports, and organizing materials are available on the SDS Antiwar Working Group’s homepage at https://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com.
Posted in Press Releases, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Demonstrations mark 8th anniversary of Afghan War–demand immediate U.S./NATO withdrawal
Students on 25 campuses across the United States will protest eight long years of war against and occupation of the people of Afghanistan, on Wednesday October 7. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a nation-wide student organization committed to activism for peace, justice and equality, are organizing the protest.
“We are outraged by the daily loss of life and devastation caused by the U.S. military in Afghanistan,” Daniel Ginsberg-Jaeckle, a member of SDS in Milwaukee, WI. “For eight years this occupation has brought nothing but misery, poverty and suffering to the Afghan people. The U.S. and NATO need to get out now.”
The protests come on the heels of the largest loss of life for U.S. occupation forces in a year. On Sunday October 4, anti-occupation fighters in Afghanistan killed nine U.S. soldiers in a series of attacks. So far, 869 U.S. troops are dead in Afghanistan since the occupation began in 2001 – with over a quarter of those killed in the past ten months alone. There are over 4,000 U.S. wounded.
U.S. and NATO occupation forces do not keep track of civilian casualties, but many estimate that U.S. air strikes and gunfire have killed tens of thousands of Afghanis. Just last month, U.S. air strikes killed over 90 Afghan civilians in the northern Afghan village of Omar Kheil. A similar strike in Farah province on May 4 this year killed 147 civilians.
“The U.S. occupation is a disaster for Afghanistan, just like it is for Iraq. The Afghan people will never have stability and peace until the U.S. leaves”, said Stephanie Taylor, a member of SDS at the University of Minnesota.
The organizers of the October 7th protests note that the war and occupation of Afghanistan is linked to U.S. interests in controlling strategic energy resources and markets in central Asia. Jenae Stainer, an SDS organizer in Tuscaloosa, Alabama explains, “Our government wants to keep us ignorant about the real reasons and true costs of war both at home and in Afghanistan. That is why organizing to stop the war is so important.”
Organizers of the October 7th actions say they will continue to initiate demonstrations to protest the occupation of Afghanistan until all U.S. and NATO forces leave the country. “We will keep speaking out and organizing to support the people of Afghanistan in their struggle for independence from U.S. occupation,” said Ginsberg-Jaeckle. “We will continue to demand that the U.S. government stop spending money on war and occupation, and fund people’s needs here at home, including education, housing, jobs, and healthcare.”
U.S. Out of Afghanistan Now!
Fund Education, Not Occupation!
The SDS Anti-War Working Group exists to help coordinate national SDS anti-war activity. For more information, please contact Daniel Ginsberg-Jaeckle at 608-658-5480. More information, reports, and organizing materials are available on the SDS Antiwar Working Group’s homepage at https://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com.
###
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The Antiwar Working group of the Students for a Democratic Society
(SDS) strongly condemns the September 4 Kunduz massacre perpetrated by
the United States-led coalition in Afghanistan. Under the pretext of
supposed “Taliban hijackers”, US warplanes bombed the northern Afghan
village of Omar Kheil, killing at least 90 civilians and injuring many
more.
While horrifying, this is only the latest in a long series of war
crimes and atrocities by the US in Afghanistan. On May 4, a similar
strike in western Farah province resulted in 147 civilian deaths. “The
US occupation is a disaster for Afghanistan, just like it is for Iraq.
The Afghani people will never have stability and peace until the US
leaves”, said UMN SDSer Stephanie Taylor.
This is a brutal war and it is based on lies. This war has nothing to
do with fighting terrorism, and everything to do with the long-term
control of strategic resources in Central Asia for the benefit of the
US ruling class and its allies. As Jenae Stainer, an SDS organizer in
Tuscaloosa, Alabama put it, “Our government wants to keep us ignorant
about the real reasons and true costs of war both at home and in
Afghanistan. That is why organizing to stop the war is so important.”
At the 2009 National Convention of the Students for a Democratic
Society, a resolution to mark the 8th anniversary of the war in
Afghanistan was passed unanimously. On October 7th, SDS chapters
around the country will be organizing protests, actions and
educational activities to raise awareness on campus about the
continuing war in Afghanistan. Students for a Democratic
Society is urging students and youth across the country to participate
in whatever way they can.
Organizers are calling for the billions that are wasted on empire
building abroad to be used to for providing jobs, health care, and
education at home instead. Daniel Jaeckle-Ginsberg, a Milwaukee SDSer
said: “With our economy in recession, and our university budget in
crisis, Milwaukee SDS will be demanding, ‘Fund Education, Not
Occupation!'”
The SDS Anti-War Working Group exists to help coordinate national SDS
anti-war activity. For more information, please contact Chapin Gray at
251.605.7780. More information, reports, and organizing materials are
available on the SDS Antiwar Working Group’s homepage at
https://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com.
U.S. Out of Afghanistan Now!
Fund Education, Not Occupation!
###
Posted in Press Releases | Leave a Comment »
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 24, 2009
At the 2009 national convention of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), over one hundred delegates from across the country unanimously endorsed a resolution calling for immediate U.S. withdrawal and an unconditional end to the occupation of Afghanistan.
To demonstrate solidarity with the occupied Afghan people, SDS chapters will hold campus protests on Wednesday October 7, 2009, the 8th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan.
Chapin Gray is an organizer with SDS at the Tuscaloosa, Alabama chapter. In introducing the resolution to the floor of the convention, Gray noted that, “The war in Afghanistan is not the ‘good’ war. It is an unjust occupation and needs to end now.” Gray continued, “Every anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, students have turned out to protest. Now that the U.S. is shifting its attention from Iraq to Afghanistan, and sending tens of thousands of more troops, we have to show mass opposition to the occupation of Afghanistan and demand ‘U.S. Out of Afghanistan Now’.”
The resolution adopted at the convention, “U.S Out of Afghanistan! End the War Now!”, stated in part:
October 7th will mark the eighth year that the U.S. has been at war with Afghanistan, under the auspice of fighting “the war on terror.” In eight years under occupation, tens of thousands of Afghans have been killed by U.S. air strikes, bombs, and bullets, and the Afghani infrastructure has been devastated. In just one day of this war, May 4, 2009, U.S. air strikes killed over 150 Afghan children, women, men in a village in Farah province.
Kati Ketz, an organizer with the Antiwar Working Group of SDS, emphasized, “The Afghan people have a right to self-determination, and a right to live in a country that is not being constantly bombed by US and NATO forces.” Ketz stated, “We call on all students and youth in the U.S. to demonstrate solidarity and take to the streets October 7 to demand ‘U.S. out of Afghanistan’! Money going to bomb, oppress and occupy Afghanistan – and Iraq – should be used here at home to support schools and fund scholarships.”
Students and youth are encouraged to sign on to the call to action initiated by SDS. Endorsements by local, regional and national antiwar coalitions are also welcomed.
For more information, please contact sdsantiwar@gmail.com or visit https://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com
###
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The following resolution was unanimously endorsed the 4th National Convention of Students for a Democratic Society, July 12-14 in Murfreesboro, TN. Please contact us by e-mail or leave a comment if you wish to add your student or youth organization to the list of endorsers.
Download the flyer here: U.S. Out of Afghanistan! End the War Now! (.pdf)
Delegates unanimously voted to organize action on October 7, 8th anniversary of the US invasion of Afghanistan
We are calling for students across the country to protest the 8th anniversary of war with Afghanistan by taking action and demanding that the U.S. get out of Afghanistan now!
October 7th will mark the eighth year that the U.S. has been at war with Afghanistan, under the auspice of fighting “the war on terror.” In eight years under occupation, tens of thousands of Afghans have been killed by U.S. air strikes, bombs, and bullets, and the Afghani infrastructure has been devastated.In just one day of this war, May 4, 2009, U.S. air strikes killed over 150 Afghan children, women, men in a village in Farah province.
The war affects us here at home as well. The number of U.S. troop casualties increases more and more each year that the war continues. By next year the cost of the Afghanistan war will be more than the cost of the Iraq war, with the U.S. government requesting $65 billion dollars for the war in 2010. So far the government has spent almost a trillion dollars in the wars against Afghanistan and Iraq. With that money, we could have paid for 35,068,800 four year university scholarships.
We, as students, have a responsibility to the people of Afghanistan to stand up, speak out, and take action against the war! We are calling on all students to sign-on and pledge to take action on October 7th to mark the 8th anniversary of the U.S. invasion. That action could be walking out of classes, occupying buildings, hosting a teach-in or film-showing – any form of protest to show opposition to the Afghanistan war!
The Obama administration is sending a “surge” of 21,000 U.S. troops to fight the insurgency. We know this is not a so-called “just war,” but a war for regional domination and control of natural gas reserves in the region. The Afghan people have a right to self-determination, to choose their own leaders and governments and to take care of their own affairs. It is not the place of the U.S. to bomb Afghanistan into submission and to choose its political leaders. The only real way for Afghanistan to be free is for the bombings to halt, and for all U.S. and NATO troops to leave the country immediately.
Help us get the word out – We want money to go to our education, not war and occupation! We want the U.S. out of Afghanistan NOW!
Download the flyer here: U.S. Out of Afghanistan! End the War Now! (.pdf)
Posted in Statements | 1 Comment »
The Antiwar Working Group of Students for a Democratic Society condemns in the strongest possible terms the May 4 bombings, carried out by the U.S. military in Afghanistan’s western Farah province, which have resulted in in 147 civilian deaths. Words cannot express the outrage and sadness that we feel. Our deepest condolences go out to the families of those who were killed by the U.S. air force. Our thoughts are with them, and with all occupied peoples of Afghanistan who struggle every day to be free.
What happened on May 4 is not an isolated incident. This bombing is the latest atrocity in a brutal occupation that has killed thousands of Afghans and driven millions from their homes. Unable to win a ground war against a guerrilla army, the U.S. is resorting to wide-scale air strikes. The inevitable result is a huge increase in civilian casualties. U.S. military reports show the air force dropped 438 bombs in Afghanistan in April alone, while 163 tons dropped in 2004 went up to 1,956 in 2007.
For too long, Afghanistan was the ‘forgotten war’. Now the horrible reality that U.S. occupation has created in Afghanistan is impossible to ignore. Every day brings more news of civilian deaths at the hands of the U.S. military. While Afghans starve and suffer in poverty, the corrupt, U.S.-backed puppet government gets rich off drug trafficking. The U.S., in its quest for empire, has brought nothing but misery, poverty and death to Afghanistan. And now President Obama is escalating the war, sending 21,000 more U.S. troops to prevent the hated occupation from collapsing.
We say ‘Enough’! As students and youth, we stand with our sisters and brothers in Afghanistan in their struggle for liberation. Just as we stood up for the people of Iraq and marched, risked arrest, organized day and night, and held sit-ins, blockades, and occupied legislative offices, so too must we now act in support of the people of Afghanistan.
We urge chapters of SDS to do all they can to protest against the criminal U.S. occupation of Afghanistan and raise the demands, “End the occupations now! U.S. out of Iraq and Afghanistan!”
Antiwar Working Group
Students for a Democratic Society
May 12, 2009
Posted in Statements | Leave a Comment »
National Day of Action Against the Occupation of Afghanistan
SDS Anti-War Working Group 