Catholic Worker June 1997

STOP KILLING IRAQI CHILDREN!

U.S./UN SANCTIONS ARE KILLING THE CHILDREN OF IRAQ! These children are made in God's image just like children in the U.S.. They are our brothers and sisters. They have names and families and friends who love them. Yet they die as a result of a murderous policy initiated and carried out by the U.S. and the United Nations. We, members and friends of the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker Community and the Voices in the Wilderness Campaign, come to the White House today to demand an end to these criminal sanctions.

SANCTIONS:THE WEAPON THAT KEEPS KILLING

EFFECTS OF U.S./UN SANCTIONS

* * * According to UN statistics over 600,000 Iraqi children have died in the seven years of the sanctions. This is a direct result of the near total collapse of the medical, water purification and sanitation systems.

* * * Mortality rate for children under 5 has gone from 540 per month before the embargo to the current rate of 5,600 per month.

* * * Children over 5 years of age are dying at the rate of 8000 a month. In early May. after visiting Iraq, U.N. Under‑Secretary General Yasushi Akashi called conditions in Iraqi hospitals "deplorable."

As a result of U.S. bombing , the " shooting war " and economic sanctions, over l million Iraqi's have died. The infrastructure is still in ruin . Secretary of State Madaleine Albright stated that the sanctions, despite the fact that they cause the death of thousands of children, are " worth it . "

Four million Iraqi's are at severe nutritional risk . Even though some food and medicine are allowed to be imported , with current inflation there is not enough money to pay for them . Starvation as a means of foreign policy is unconscionable ! The sanctions are nothing more than a silent war . They have clearly done nothing to affect Saddam Hussein ; only the people our suffering . The current " food for oil " deal (U.N. Resolution 986) has not succeeded in bringing relief to the Iraqi people .

Today we join with people in over 24 U.S. and foreign cities in calling for an end to the sanctions against Iraqi . We demand that monies currently spent on U.S. nuclear , conventional and other weapons be re‑directed to rebuild Iraqi 's infrastructure and social programs in the U.S. Please join this nonviolent protest and demand that President Clinton , Congress and the UN lift these immoral sanctions . In the name of' God who commands us not to kill , in the name of the victims , please act to save the children of Iraq .

For more info call 202 ‑ 882 ‑ 9649 (D .C .) 312 ‑ 784 ‑ 8837 (Chicago)

On holy Saturday , Christians all over the world remember the guarded tomb : Jesus has been crucified and is dead ; he has not yet risen.

We come today to the White House to commemorate that dark and empty day when Christ still lay dead. We remember the children of God who continue to be crucified by this nation's political, economic and military policies .

Tomorrow we celebrate Easter; the new life promised by the risen Christ . Yet we know that we cannot experience the promise of the resurrection and God 's Kindom until we repent from our system 's violence and set the oppressed free .

We are all God 's children and we are called to protect life and resist the forces of death . To truly celebrate the resurrection means to practice nonviolence, to beat all swords into plowshares, to abolish war and to establish justice for all peoples. Please join us .

DID YOU KNOW THAT

53 CENTS OUT OF EVERY FEDERAL TAX DOLLAR GOES TO THE MILITARY BUDGET ?

‑ THE MILITARY BUDGET IS TEN TIMES THE SIZE OF THE EDUCATION BUDGET AS WELL AS SEVENTEEN TIMES THAT OF THE SOCIAL SERVICES BUDGET ?

‑ THE U.S. CONTINUES TO BUILD NUCLEAR WEAPONS IN VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL LAW ?

‑ LANDMINES LEFT FROM PAST U.S. ‑ SUPPORTED WARS KILL 26.000 PEOPLE A YEAR ?

‑ EACH U. S. CITIZEN PAYS THE EQUIVALENT OF $2.50 PER DAY TO MAINTAIN THE UNITED STATES NUCLEAR ARSENAL ?

‑ THE UNITED STATES COMPRISES 6% OF THE WORLD 'S POPULATION , BUT CONSUMES 40% OF THE WORLD 'S NON‑RENEWABLE RESOURCES ?

‑ IN 1998 , THE U.S. SUBSIDIZED WEAPONS MANUFACTURERS WITH 7.6 BILLION DOLLARS TO SELL WEAPONS ABROAD ''

‑ EVERY MAJOR U.S. MILITARY BASE IS CONTAMINATED WITH TOXIC. RADIOACTIVE OR EXPLOSIVE WASTE ?

- IN 1998 . ONLY 0.6% OF THE 1.36 TRlLLION DOLLAR BUDGET WILL BE ALLOCATED TO HOUSING ?

‑ THE GOVERNMENT WILL ADD OVER 10 BILLION TO THE MILITARY BUDGET IN 1997 ?

‑ ONE OUT OF FOUR CHlLDREN IN THE UNITED STATES LIVES IN POVERTY ?

- AN ESTIMATED 7 MILLIONS PEOPLE IN THIS COLTNTRY ARE HOMELESS ?

We, visiting students of four colleges from the Midwest , would like to share with you a glimpse of the city you do not see . Beneath the cherry blossoms and monuments we have discovered a city that does not meet the expectations nor fulfill the promises which are assured us by officials . This facade is not only structural but also political, economic and social. The root of these facades is fear. We invite you to come with us behind these facades and to see what we have seen.

What we have seen …

‑ men and women at the Sheraton Hotel selling weapons of war as if they were dishwashers. ‑ Erin, 19

‑ more smiles in the homeless shelters than in the Pentagon. ‑ Pat, I9

‑ men and women putting in another day at the office in the industry of death , more concerned about keeping their jobs at the Pentagon than with the ramifications of their work. ‑ Pat, 19

‑ more liquor stores than child care centers or markets. ‑ Sara, 20

‑ people in the shadow of the Capitol, lying on top of grates in boxes for warmth . ‑ Phil, 22

‑ a pregnant women carrying new life into the office building where the deaths of thousands of children all over the world are ordered each day. ‑ Matt, 20

‑ that those who have the least, give the most; and that a smile is more powerful than a business suit. ‑ Cate, 20

‑ a loving mother in a homeless shelter desperately trying to instill values in her young children, but trapped in an environment which strongly contradicts her efforts. ‑ Michelle, 20

‑ the different generations exchanging internal fears. Some of them hid behind military uniforms while we all wept. We all suffer. . . ‑ Natalie, 19

‑ people who proclaim that they are Christians, yet choose not to look at the misery around them. ‑ Gary, 21

The Gospel commands us to "Be not afraid!" Pray with us that we will be given the courage to see more deeply than the fabricated veneers which have been prepared for us to see .

My finger caresses the cherry petals

of the seeds my forebears planted-

the roots are there but the tree is dying .

The war paint they once wore is the paint I endure-

I fear my own reflection

in such dirty water .

I cannot be free by singing

sweet songs of liberty

for thee I weep …

‑ Matt and Natalie, 20, I9

Join us in nonviolence and protest against the continued proliferation of weapons of personal and mass destruction whether they be of military ‑, or political or economic make. "Be not afraid," the glory of the resurrection awaits!