Voice of Revolution

State of the Union Actions

Tens of Thousands Say: Drive Out the Bush Regime Now!

January 31, 2006 - Chicago, Illinois

In demonstrations in 68 cities across the country on January 31, thousands of people from every region of the country came together to “Make Noise and Drown out Bush’s Lies” during his speech. Many youth, women and workers took their stand against Bush’s war crimes and called for his removal. They represented all the world’s people in saying it is the organized people who can drive Bush out and no one is waiting for the next election!

Atlanta, Georgia

Hundreds of protesters organized a spirited rally and a loud and energized cacophony of noise across the street from the CNN national headquarters. They came streaming in from all over town, bringing instruments, pots, pans, whistles, and drums to drown out Bush’s lies and applaud their own stands against war.

Louisville, Kentucky

Protesters gathered at the busy rush hour intersection of Bardstown and Eastern Parkway, with large banners, “He Lies, He Spies,” “Liar-in-Chief,” “Worst President Ever,” The noise was ear-splitting.

Greensboro, North Carolina

Greensboro, North Carolina

Actions involved a local arts movie venue called The Scene, with a high school band playing rock and roll and blues favorites. Speakers included high school students, the President of the Greensboro Pulpit Forum which is an African American Ministerial Alliance with more than 90 members, two Palestinian college students, a peace candidate for Congress, activists against police brutality, and more.

Austin, Texas

Several hundred protesters gathered at City Hall to “Bring The Noise.” Prominent musicians like Alejandro Escovedo and Sumner Erickson and the Texcentrics, performed. Speakers included a government professor who let his class out early to participate in the event.

Houston, Texas

Hundreds of people from many walks of life gathered to oppose the Bush regime. Mothers, Katrina survivors, high school and college students and youth — all united in opposition to Bush’s crimes.

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Many dozens of people marched in front of KJRH Channel 2, protesting the disinformation of the media and its role in spreading Bush’s lies. Protesters joined in making noise and a band also provided music.

Tucson, Arizona

Several hundred students at the University of Arizona participated in a noon-time rally. They set up a large sound system in front of the administration building and took turns speaking out against the Bush regime. About fifty students from two high schools — mostly young women — walked out of class and marched two miles to join the action on campus. Yelling affirmations to the speakers and doing chants, they were the most enthusiastic. To conclude their action, students -occupied the ROTC building.

Los Angeles, California

Thousands in Los Angeles, including many youth, stood firm against the Bush agenda. They came with drums, pots and pans, trumpets, clarinets, cans filled with beans, noisemakers of all sizes, shapes and sounds — young, old, of all nationalities and backgrounds — with one simple call: Drive Out the Bush Regime!

San Francisco, California

Thousands packed Union Square in San Francisco. Passionate speeches, dancing and a forty foot statue of Bush attracted a fired-up crowd. Acting to represent all the people of the world, participants toppled global tyrant George W. Bush, bringing the statue down. Giant “Bush Step Down!” banners also hung over in-coming freeways for days before the event.

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A diverse crowd of many dozens converged at the federal building in downtown Minneapolis. Protestors played music, banged on drums and pots and pans, blew on whistles and other noisemakers to express their rejection of Bush and his crimes. Passing cars honked in support, and the crowd booed to samples of Bush’s speeches that were played on speakers.

Madison, Wisconsin

Many different people came together during rush hour to express their united opposition to the Bush agenda. Protesters came with numerous signs and megaphones for chanting. The response from drivers and passers by was positive — lots of honking, waving, slowing down and supportive cheers.

Chicago, Illinois

Hundreds of people demonstrated in Daley Plaza to drown out the lies of Bush’s State of the Union address and demand that Bush Step Down. A lively and militant crowd chanted and made noise for more than three hours. They also marched on the offices of Fox TV and the Chicago Tribune newspaper to oppose the lies and disinformation of the media. Smaller groups went out into various neighborhoods to encourage everyone to join in drowning out Bush’s lies.

Cleveland, Ohio

Protesters from as far away as Mansfield and Canton (65 miles) converged in Cleveland to express their demands. The parade of protesters grew as it traveled through neighborhoods because it made so much noise. Apartment buildings along the march route were filled with people standing in their windows and showing their support.

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

People filled Market Square in Portsmouth, slamming pots, blowing horns, beating drums and shouting in unison, “No more Bush!” Ages ranged from the very old to the very young, all of whom braved sub-freezing temperatures and icy roads to make their voices heard. Dozens of passing motorists added to the noise with their car horns as they passed the vibrant crowd.

New York City

Two lanes of Broadway were filled with people near Times Square in NYC. Filled with defiance and determined outrage to drive the Bush regime from power, protesters chanted, spoke out and made lots of spirited noise.

Washington, DC

Hundreds rallied in DC and marched to the police station to oppose suppression of dissent. Activist Cindy Sheehan had been removed from the Capitol and was being held at the jail. She was arrested for wearing a T-shirt that said: “2,245 Dead. How many more?” Protesters denounced the attacks on dissent and vowed to continue organizing against Bush.

In related news, on February 2, the International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity by the Bush Administration presented its preliminary findings on the Bush Administration’s war crimes and crimes against humanity. Its areas of indictment are: 1) war, 2) torture, 3) global environment, 4) global health, and 5) the administration’s response to Katrina. The commission will be issuing detailed findings, accompanied by full documentation. Activists and many others are also stepping up their mobilization -efforts for anti-Bush actions on Saturday, February 4 in Washington, DC.

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Briefs on Actual State of the Union

Religious Activists Protest Bush State of Union

A group of religious activists mobilized their nationwide network to oppose the Bush budget and State of the Union. They encouraged anyone tuning in to see the President’s State of the Union Address to realize that “here are some things you will not see:

* Faces of those who will be pushed aside because of the devastating and immoral cuts to the federal budget

* Photos of 2,300+ U.S. coffins flown back from Iraq

* Posters showing no-bid contracts for Halliburton for the rebuilding of Iraq

* A ticking display showing the $400 + billion deficit

* A billionaire sitting beside the First Lady, smiling broadly because of the Administration-led and Congress-passed tax cuts that benefit only a handful of ultra-wealthy

* An Exxon-Mobil executive holding up a sign saying “Thank you, Mr. President and Congress for refusing to bring up price gouging — we raked in the biggest quarterly profit in the history of the world”

* “Brownie” (President Bush’s pet name for former FEMA director Mike Brown) sitting in the balcony smiling broadly beside a grateful 9th Ward New Orleans resident, proud of our government policies that put people first

* Photos of U.S. secret prisons showing humane treatment of its detainees

* Scientists applauding the U.S. for its refusal to join in the world-wide effort to stop greenhouse gases, even though the U.S. is the world’s biggest polluter.

You won’t see any of this, of course. But if you want to really know the state of the union, this is it.” The group called on all to take action to defend the rights of the most vulnerable who are being brutally attacked by the planned budget and to reject all the Bush attacks on rights.

Halliburton to Build Internment Camps

Infamous Halliburton, known for its many lucrative government contracts in Iraq and more recently in Louisiana in the aftermath of Katrina, has now been given a $385 million contract to build detention and processing facilities. Indicating government plans for mass roundups of immigrants and any branded as “enemies” by President George W. Bush, Halliburton is to construct a giant facility for use in a “national emergency.” Bush has already made clear that he will continue to brand people as “enemy combatants,” subject to indefinite military detention without charges or trial and with no crime having been committed.

Another Federal Police Force Planned

The current version of the USA Patriot Act, expected to be passed by Congress February 3, includes a provision that creates a new, permanent, federal police force with far broader powers to arrest people without cause and with no crime committed. The new force, headed by the Secretary of Homeland Security, are especially for use during demonstrations.

This federal police force will be empowered to “make arrests without warrant for any offense against the United States committed in their presence, or for any felony cognizable under the laws of the United States if they have reasonable [not probable cause, but reasonable] grounds to believe that the person to be arrested has committed or is committing such felony.” The language of “any offense against the United States,” particularly given present conditions where simply wearing a t-shirt against the war is considered an offense, is very broad and arbitrary. So too are “reasonable grounds to believe.” Actual evidence of probable cause is not required, simply the belief of the officer involved. This new force will be able to arrest people en mass and will no longer require the authority of local or state police to do so, including authority for such minor offenses as trespassing, disorderly conduct, and so forth.

The new police are assigned various -jurisdictions, including events designated as “special events of national significance,” or SENS. Recent national demonstrations, such as the Bush counter-inaugural, the Republican and Democratic Conventions and those against the Free Trade Area of the Americas have all been designated as SENS, as are most large actions at the White House. Whenever the President, Vice-President, Cabinet members and top Congresspeople are present and demonstrations are planned, the events are commonly labeled as SENS. This new force is in addition to the existing Secret Service, which also plays a main role in any SENS event.

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Justice After Katrina

Katrina Workers Win Demands at Contractor-Run Campsite

- People’s Hurricane Relief Fund -

In pitch darkness, in a field with no lights or bathing facilities, more than 100 Katrina workers translated weeks of organizing into a powerful collective bargaining session. During a three-hour meeting the workers confronted -contractors responsible for the campsite where they struggle to survive. They won their demands for running water, bathroom and shower facilities, written rental contracts, an end to eviction threats and other basic issues. Although negotiations are still incomplete, the meeting and the day’s victories are a major challenge to prevailing contractor-worker relations around the ravaged Gulf Coast.

The workers are permanently housed at New Orleans’ City Park, at one of several sites where Storm Force Inc. collects rent but has not provided even minimal facilities. Deficiencies in the campsite pose serious dangers. Reconstruction laborers work seven days a week amid toxic dust and sludge, including many whose employers fail to provide protective gear, for example. Few workers can afford to bathe at the only showers available near the campsite, privately contracted at $5 apiece. At the workers’ meeting, a Storm Force principal committed to reducing the cost of showers within days. Workers have yet to decide whether the offer meets their health needs.

“Skilled workers came here to rebuild the city. On the Internet and the radio they begged us to come,” said a laborer who traveled from Illinois in October. “We get here and they’re treating us like trash. Just like trash. And we don’t have any place to go besides this muddy field.”

“Everyone is on some reconstruction committee, doing meetings and conference calls. But the families in City Park are actually doing the labor,” said Jen Lai, an attorney with the People’s Hurricane Relief Fund. “Violating their human rights is just not an option for New Orleans.”

The problems faced by migrant laborers mirror the issues of Katrina survivors. Although city officials have urged displaced people to return and reconstruction workers to come, it has provided no temporary housing. Some of the workers are the “permanently displaced” of other disasters. Survivors of Katrina fear that those workers represent the future of many New Orleanians, unless obstacles to returnees are removed.

“There is no available housing in New Orleans. There’s so much bureaucracy. There’s so much price-gouging. These are the things obstructing the return of the people and rebuilding the city,” said Leah Hodges of the Causeway Concentration Camp Committee, a Katrina survivor group.

“In my city, workers have rights; tenants have rights; communities have rights. These conditions cannot exist in this park, in my city, in my country,” said Tracie Washington, a New Orleans attorney for the workers.

City Park officials had promised to attend, but were not present.

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Louisiana’s Coastal Tribes Demand Assistance

Four of Louisiana’s coastal Native American tribes recently issued an urgent appeal for support to contend with the government-organized disasters in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Tribal leaders say they have been forgotten and their people continue to suffer. They applaud the support they have received from people who are organizing to provide relief, while the government continues to block rebuilding. The tribal leaders emphasize that the refusal to provide for their communities is another example of U.S. efforts to annihilate the Native peoples and eliminate their culture of resistance.

The four tribes who issued the appeal are the Bayou Lafourche, Grand Caillou/Dulac and Isle de Jean Charles Bands of the Biloxi-Chitimacha (BCCM) as well as the Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe (PACIT). Located in Terrebonne and Lafourche Parishes, their small communities, situated on high ridges that extend like fingers into Louisiana’s coastal wetlands, are reeling from years of attacks on their rights and coastal land loss, brought on in large part by the oil and gas monopolies. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, up to 80 percent of Native Americans in the area live below the poverty line, and few move on to college.

Tribal communities that were historically dry are now flooding even during small storms. Land that once held gardens and pastures has become salt marsh or open water. Because of continued flooding and lack of resources to repair and raise homes, tribal members are leaving the traditional communities impacting tribal cohesion and culture.

For example, the Isle de Jean Charles, home to the Biloxi-Chitimacha, once a thriving community, has become marshland marked by skeletons of dead oaks and abandoned houses.

Income supported by traditional fishing is also threatened by cheap imported seafood, rising fuel costs and now the destruction and pollution of the Gulf in the wake of Katrina.

The tribes are demanding the funds needed to rebuild and protect their communities. They are also urging activists to lend a hand in providing more food, building materials and volunteers. Four Directions Relief Project, one of the collectives organized to defend the tribes, is spearheading current efforts by the people to provide relief. They bring out that the tribes are determined to prevail and that organizing is going forward to defend their rights.

For more information

Albert Naquin, Chief, Isle de Jean Charles Band of the Biloxi-Chitimacha, (985) 232-1286, whitebuffaloa@netscape.net

Marlene Foret, Chairwoman, Grand Caillou/Dulac Band of the Biloxi-Chitimacha, (985) 594-6593, mmforet@mobiletel.com

Charles Verdin, Chairman, Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe, (985) 856-5336, pacit@cowscorner.com

Patty Ferguson, Tribal Attorney, Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe, 480-425-2637 Ferguson@SacksTierney.com

Randy Verdun, Chief, Bayou Lafourche Band of the Biloxi-Chitimacha, 225-485-8765 bccmi@aol.com

Naomi Archer, Coordinator, Four Directions Relief Project, 828.230.1404 fourdirections@riseup.net

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Spring Break in New Orleans

- Common Ground Collective -

Why spend spring break in the typical destinations of the Caribbean, Virginia Beach, or Mexico when you can experience firsthand the rebirth of one of the world’s most exciting cities — New Orleans! In the spirit of the 1960s Freedom Rides, we are calling on students, especially African American students, to descend on New Orleans for any amount of time during Spring Break. During their stay, students will experience a mecca of African-American music, culture, and history, while also participating in the historic task of rebuilding the city’s communities.

Voices of Katrina and the Common Ground Collective are inviting students to come to New Orleans to participate in a service-learning trip during their spring breaks. Common Ground Collective will provide basic but secure housing and three family-style meals per day. In return, students will assist in the rebuilding of the area’s most devastated communities. Specifically, volunteers will be gutting, cleaning, and repairing houses, as well as distributing food, water and clothing to residents. Students will be able to apply studies in law, medicine, and other specialized courses of study towards the rebuilding needs of the community through work with Common Ground’s legal team, medical clinic, and construction crews. Students of any and all backgrounds and skill levels will find opportunities to contribute towards the rebuilding effort and will have a spring break that is incredibly rewarding as well as enjoyable.

Workshops on social justice issues will be offered as well as tours of cultural and historical sites. All you have to do is provide your own transportation to New Orleans, and Common Ground Collective and Voices of Katrina will take care of the rest.

Common Ground Collective was formed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina to provide immediate aid and long-term solidarity along the Gulf Coast. We are a local, non-profit community-run organization offering mutual aid and support to the New Orleans communities that have been historically neglected and underserved. Common Ground’s teams of volunteers include: medical and health providers, aid workers, community organizers, legal representatives, radio/print media, and people from all over with broad skills from all walks of life.

To get more involved, or to ask questions, Tiffany Hickman at 504-312-1729, or write freedom.ride2@gmail.com.

Voices of Katrina is a newly formed group of African American scholars and community organizers who are lending support to the people of New Orleans. Contact: holder@rowan.edu , Or Call: 504.368.6897, 609.617.9815 , 917.440.9679, 856.881.5982

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FEMA Maps for New Orleans

Plans to Justify Removal of African American Population

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently released detailed maps of flood and wind damage from Hurricane Katrina and the breach of the levees in New Orleans. The maps are being used by government agencies at all levels to justify not rebuilding the poor and African American areas of New Orleans — the majority of the city.

The state Louisiana Authority has already said it will not provide any funds for rebuilding in areas designated by the maps as too “flood-prone.” The Authority receives and disperses all federal funds for New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole.

A study recently done by a Brown University professor, says that based on the maps, up to 80 percent of African Americans will be blocked from returning. The study compared the maps to census data. The findings said that if New Orleans’ returning population was limited to those areas undamaged by Katrina, half of the white population, mostly poor people, also will not return. The study found that areas damaged by Katrina and the levee breach were 75 percent African American. As well, 29 percent of the households damaged belonged to families living below the poverty line. More than half of those living in devastated areas were renters.

The most vulnerable were the most impacted and are now the ones being treated as though they are slaves. Clearly, when government officials at all levels refer to the “smaller footprint” for New Orleans, they mean massive removal of the African American and poor whites.

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Katrina Congressional “Investigations”

Setting the Stage for Increased Use of Military

The House of Representatives is currently investigating the government failure to evacuate people in New Orleans and provide for their relief. Already, the language emerging from the investigations is setting the stage for increased use of the military in “national emergencies.”

It will be remembered that right after Katrina and the broad anger against government failure, especially that of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Bush said he thought the military was best for the job. Now, the “investigation” is being used to further promote this direction. House staffers are saying the White House was beset by the “fog of war,” and this is what prevented it from responding.

A recent briefing by Kenneth Rapuana, Bush’s deputy domestic security advisor to House committee aides provided the “facts” to fit this claim. The White House press secretary participating in the briefings added, “There was a lack of situational awareness at all levels.” He said, “That is one of the biggest lessons everyone in emergency preparedness has learned because of the storm.” Apparently, according to the White House, the President did not know the levees had collapsed until Tuesday morning, a full day after it had occurred!

The White House also continued efforts to discredit FEMA, saying Bush was not the one in charge, FEMA and Homeland Security were. The White House spokesperson added, “The White House should not be making combat decisions in Iraq. The same is true for a domestic emergency response.”

In addition, initial conclusions of the Government Accountability Office, also looking at government failure, emphasized that the problem was a lack of “clear chain of command.” The report says, “In the absence of timely and decisive action and clear leadership responsibility and accountability, there were multiple chains of command.” The report also called for Homeland Security to take better advantage of the military’s ability to rescue and evacuate victims, provide supplies and assess damage.

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