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Stop
the War in Iraq, Support Civil Liberties at Home
Keynote Address by Dr. Sami A. Al-Arian at the MacDill Air Force
Base Rally of the Florida Alliance for Peace and Social Justice in
Tampa, Florida, on Sunday, November 3rd, 2002.
Friends and
fellow anti-war and pro-peace patriots My fellow Americans of all
stripes and colors,
European, African, Asian, Latino, Arab, and Middle Eastern Americans.
Citizens and Immigrants.
Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Agnostics, Atheists
and Others.
I speak
to you today, as all of us, precious human beings endowed by the Creator
as free people with dignity and honor and respect.
No power, not even the government, should undermine your freedoms
or dignity, your rights or privileges under the constitution.
We are here today to make a strong statement and to speak on behalf
of the silent majority in this country who are steadfastly against
the looming war with Iraq.
I have a few questions that beg to be answered.
- Are any of
the president, vice president, cabinet members, White House staff
,or those who advocate war- are any of their children going to
fight this ugly war?
- Are any
members of Congress who voted for the war going to lay their children's
lives on the line in Iraq?
- Is there
a single soldier, who is going to fight this war, who is a son
or daughter of any CEO across the USA? If not, why should then
the sons and daughters of ordinary Americans die for oil or for
the principal of pre-emption on a phony threat.
We are here today
to lend support to many in the military, who oppose the war and against
the politicians and the warmongers, and the so-called the neo-cons.
Why are we against the war?
We are against the war because we don't want a perpetual conflict
between America and the Islamic world. From that part of the world,
it will be looked at as a new crusade and it would unleash a new wave
of hate and violence. And we must stop that.
There are two parties to the clash of civilizations theory, a clash
between the West and Islam and we must resist both with the same determination
and vigor.
The first party is those in this country, who are eager to wage a
war against Islam, starting with Iraq and its people- a war without
any provocation. And we must resist them.
And the second party is those who are overseas like Bin Laden and
his supporters, who want to see a war between Islam and the West and
we must resist them as well.
These clashies, as I call them, would love to see a bloodbath because
of their distorted view of world politics and history.
People in the Muslim world are asking if North Korea president's name
was Abdul Kim Il, would the administration be conducting diplomacy
or war against a declared dictator and mad man with access to weapons
of mass destruction. Why the double standard? Why?
People the world over are asking why do we need to sacrifice tens,
or perhaps hundreds of thousands of innocent people, haven't we killed
enough?
Saddam is no doubt a brutal dictator, and he's hardly the only one
in that neighborhood, but does that justify the killing of thousands
of his victims to get rid of him? This is insanity.
Or does this policy just represent blind hatred of the other, like
when former secretary of state Madeleine Half-bright said on national
TV in 1996, that the killing of a half-million Iraqi children was
worth it! Shame on her. Iraqi children are no collateral damage.
Civil liberties at home
Brothers and sisters,
Rest assured that when we have war, destruction and oppression abroad,
then, we'll have repression, injustice and civil rights abuses at
home.
Our movement is a movement in defense of freedom, dignity, and human
rights for all people across the globe.
We should not sacrifice our freedoms and civil liberties to feel safe.
Yet, this is what many politicians and powerful groups want us to
submit to. And we must say No.
We should not surrender to intimidation or fear so we may feel secure.
Yet, this is what many politicians and powerful groups want us to
bow to. And we must say No.
We should not allow fake policies and the ENRON code of ethics to
rule our society in the name of security. Yet, this is what many politicians
and powerful groups want us to give in to. And we must say No.
We must fight evil at all levels. And we must resist.
We must replace the forces of hatred with the army of love.
We must change the tone of bigotry with the language of embrace.
We must end the threat of exclusion with the promise of inclusion.
We must fight oppression and injustice, so justice can roll down and
fill our streams and rivers
We must not confuse patriotism with zealotry. We must not mistake
patriotism with nationalism.
To be patriotic is to be able to question government policy at times
of crisis.
To be patriotic is to stand up for the bill of rights and the constitution
at times of uncertainty and insecurity.
To be patriotic is to speak up against the powerful in defense of
the weak and the voiceless.
To be patriotic is to be willing to pay the price to preserve our
freedoms, our dignity, and our rights.
To be patriotic is to challenge the abuses of the PATRIOT Act.
My friends,
- We need
a call to educate our fellow citizens; that our constitutional
rights and freedoms are the most important in the world, and for
maintaining what's unique about our society.
- We need
to unite against the forces of war and destruction, darkness and
injustice, of bigotry and exclusion, of hatred and fear.
- We need
to build coalitions for civil rights, for peace, to speak up and
contact our elected officials and tell them with one unified voice:
That America is the land of the free and the home of the brave,
not the land of fear, and the home of the warmongers.
That America is the beacon of freedom and peace, not insecurity
and destruction.
Let's keep the spirit of Freedom alive. Let's keep the torch of
peace lit.
Let's remember that dissent and criticism are the lifeblood of
freedom in a democracy.
Stop the double standard
The president says that he wants peace. But let's look at who is his
model for peace. He calls the certified butcher of Sabra and Shatilla
and Jenin, the current Crime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, a man
of peace. Not even Sharon believes that.
As a university professor, who does not speak on its behalf, let me
conclude by giving you this short quiz.
To which country
had 15 out of the 19 hijackers belonged to in the horrible Sept.
11th attacks? (Saudi Arabia)
Which country
has a mad-man, a dictator who supposedly killed hundreds of thousands
of his country men, and who just declared that he has nuclear weapons?
(North Korea)
Which country
alone in the M.E. has nuclear weapons and refuses to sign the nuclear
non-proliferation treaty and bars international inspections? (Israel)
Which country
in the M.E. have been violating international borders of other sovereign
states with warplanes, artillery, and naval gunfire in the 40's,
50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and beyond? (Israel)
Which country
in the M.E. still occupies other people's land and refuses to withdraw
in defiance of the international community and threatens world peace?
(Israel)
Which country
in the M.E. created over 800,000 refugees, who now number over 5M
and refuses to allow them to return to their homes, farms, and businesses?
(Israel)
Which country
in the M.E. has the second strongest lobby in the US that has manipulated
American foreign policy for decades? (Israel)
Which country
in the M.E. had employed a spy, Jonathan pollard, to steal America's
national secrets, and turned this sensitive information to our enemy,
the Soviet Union, and then rewarded the traitor with $1M and gave
him citizenship? (Israel)
Which country
on this planet, earth, is in defiance, not of 16 Security Council
resolutions, but in violation of 71 UN Security Council resolutions
(more than all other rebellious countries in the history of the
UN combined)? (Israel)
Which country
has been under punitive sanctions for 12 years, killing 1.7 million
of its civilians, being bombed every week, and we're about to go
to war against because supposedly it did not implement UN resolutions?
(Iraq)
No more wars. No more wars. No more destruction. Say yes to peace.
Say yes to life. Thank you very much and God bless you all.
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