Five Arrested at Lansing, Michigan Recruiters' Office : Cleveland IMC (((i)))

At 2pm today, the 3rd anniversary of the war in Iraq, five local peace activists--Sayrah Namaste, John Masterson, Kathie Kuhn, Charlie Nash, Mike McCurdy--shut down the South Lansing Marine Recruiting Center for a few hours. They are in the City of Lansing jail.

In solidarity with activists in 32 countries, they demonstrated under theme "Recruiting with Lies for a War based on Lies". John and Kathy climbed onto the roof of the recruiting center and dropped a banner, singing "we shall not be moved". Sayrah, Mike, and Charlie pasted up 21 signs on the windows and doors with statistics like "33% of Veterans are Homeless" "72% of US Soldiers want the US to leave Iraq" "87% of Iraqis want US out of Iraq". The three then linked arms and blocked the doors of the recruiting center. Two high school students were unable to make their appointments with the recruiters because of this.

The recruiters tried to physically push Sayrah, Mike and Charlie away from the door. One recruiter, who was especially enraged, kicked and shoved them and broke off the door handle trying to move them. He then lied and accused the three of destruction of property. The property manager was very kind and against the war and asked for a website to learn more about their action!

All the major media outlets were there--Ch 10, 47, 6, as well as the radio WKAR/NPR and newspapers LSJ and State News. Direct Action and Students for a Democratic Society rallied and chanted in support of the five while the action unfolded.

Please read their statement below:

Thank you for your support!

NO MORE WAR, NO MORE LIES COLLECTIVE
STATEMENT OF OPPOSITION TO THE IRAQ WAR

We, the undersigned, invite activists throughout the world to join us in participating in an international campaign of massive, nonviolent civil resistance to stop the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq. These actions could, as this one does, be organized to include both non-violent civil resistance and legal demonstrations. Today, we have answered this call and have temporarily shut down the operations of this military recruiting center. We have done so through peaceful means: we have creatively and visually made our opposition to the Iraq war and the back door draft clear: we have peacefully made our point through our bodies, through visual signs and symbols.

Our actions today are in solidarity with people around the world who are using nonviolent civil resistance to oppose the war in Iraq. Activists in Canada, Mexico, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Phillipines, Panama, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Uruguay, India, Taiwan, Malaysia, East Timor, Australia, Ireland, Britain, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Belgium, Sweden, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran are doing similar actions. They include Nobel prize laureates such as Harold Pinter and Mairead Corrigan Maguire , religious leaders, journalists, and mothers of soldiers that have been killed in the war, such as Celeste Zappala and Cindy Sheehan. (See http://www.aglobalcall.org for complete list)

The killing of tens of thousands of civilians, the wounding of perhaps 100,000 or more people, the torture and murder of prisoners in U.S. custody-these and other realities of the occupation are evidence of the massive state terrorism being perpetrated against the people of Iraq. At the same time, we mourn the deaths of over 2,300 soldiers of the "coalition forces," while we denounce the lies (weapons of mass destruction, ties between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda) proclaimed in an effort to justify the invasion.
First Date of International Actions: March 18-20, 2006, the third anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. We have chosen this anniversary, March 20th, to take action. We encourage others to take action, not only on the once a year anniversary, but on the anniversary of every day a bullet has been fired in anger.

Sayrah Namaste, East Lansing

Kathie Kuhn, Lansing

Mike McCurdy, Lansing

John Masterson, Lansing

Charlie Nash, Lansing

Cleveland Indy Media Center