Hello,
Of course, our usual steady updating of ZNet (www.zmag.org) proceeds. But this message is to let you know about a new antiwar coalition, United for Peace -- which ZNet/ZMagazine resoundingly supports...please see... www.unitedforpeace.org  for much more information! Of course no coalition can ever precisely reflect the full aspirations or analyses of all of its advocates, by definition of what a coalition is. But United for Peace is a great addition to the U.S. anti-war organizing project, in our view, and the vehicle through which we think a massive, powerful, diverse, and politically multi-issue and multi-tactic movement can be inspired and built. Below we have a call to actions to be held tomorrow written by one of the most energetic and effective of UFPs organizers, Leslie Cagan. First, however, here is a partial list of organizations in the coalition...to motivate your further attention...

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

American Friends Service Committee

Americans for Social Justice

An Absurd Response to an Absurd War

Anti-Capitalist Convergence

Black Radical Congress

Brockport Students Against War (BSAW)

CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities

Campus Greens

Center for Community Change

Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment

Central Nebraska Peace Workers

Change the Game

Citizens for Participation in Political Action (CPPAX)

Citizen Works

Committee to Free Pedro Pacheco

Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Social Justice

The Connected Collective

Democracy Rising

East End Women in Black

Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC)

Ella Baker Center for Human Rights

Georgetown Peace Action

Global Exchange

Grassroots International

Green Party of the United States

Greenpeace

House of The Goddess Center for Pagan Wombyn

Houston Coalition for Justice Not War

Independent Progressive Politics Network

International Socialist Organization

Institute for Policy Studies, Peace Working Group

Iraq Pledge of Resistance

A Jewish Voice for Peace

Jews for Racial & Economic Justice

KhaYUMbia

Lamorinda Peace and Justice Group

Left Turn

Long Island Alliance for Peaceful Alternatives

Middle East Children's Alliance

Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP)

Military Families Speak Out (MFSO)

Mobilize New York

National Coalition for Peace and Justice

National Council of Churches

National Network to End the War Against Iraq

NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby

Not In Our Name

Nowar Collective

Pax Christi USA

Peace Action

Peace and Justice Task Force, Rocky Mountain Conference, United Church of Christ

PeaceNoWar

Peninsula Peace and Justice Center

People Against Oppression and War

Peoples NonViolent Response Coalition (PNVRC)

Psychologists for Social Responsibility

Raging Grannies (Peninsula, CA chapter)

Ruckus Society

San Miguel Peacewalkers

September 11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows

Shalom Center

Shobak.Org (Outsider Asian Voices)

SOA Watch

Socialist Action

Strategic Pastoral Action

Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC)

Student Peace Action Network (SPAN)

Students Take Action for New Directions (STAND)

Students Transforming and Resisting Corporations (STARC)

Taking Aim

Texans for Peace

The Thomas Paine Project

TransAfrica Forum

TrueMajority

United for Justice with Peace

United Students Against Sweatsops (USAS)

University of Maryland, College Park Peace Forum (UMCP Peace Forum)

US Peace Council

United Students Against Sweatshops

Veterans for Peace

Vietnam Veterans Against the War

War Resisters League West

War Times

Washington Peace Center

West Sonoma County Women's Peace Group

Women's Action for New Directions (WAND)

Western States Legal Foundation

Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, U.S. Section

Working Assets

Z Magazine and ZNET

And here is a call from one of the

TOMORROW, DEC. 10th INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, TAKE ACTION TO STOP THIS WAR

Leslie Cagan

Is there any way to stop the insane drive toward war? Is there anything that can be done to halt the nightmare of massive bombing raids and tens of thousands of US military men and women invading and occupying Iraq? And how much time do we have before Washington's war is in place? There are no certainties about this war against Iraq....except one. Unless we do everything humanly possible to turn this around, the most powerful military force in human history will be unleashed against the people of Iraq.United For Peace, a new national campaign, has issued a call for local, decentralized actions on Tuesday, December 10th...International Human Rights Day. In the few weeks since the call was issued, and with the no staff or office or other basic infrastructure in place, the response from both national organizations and local groups has been extremely positive. In dozens of locations activists are organizing events against the drive toward war. Why International Human Rights Day, why a day in the middle of the week?

What greater violation of human rights is there than a war motivated by the desire to control oil and strengthen empire? Instead of bombing innocent people, we seek a world where foreign policy decisions are made based in respect for the rights of all people and honoring the principles of international law. And taking action on a workday will send an important message. That is, we can and will interrupt the usual flow of life in this country. We will take time and energy away from the things we normally do and instead we will take action to sound the alarm and demand that this war not happen. We will try to pull peoples focus away from what they do every day and ask them to pay attention to what Washington is doing with their money and in their name.You might be wondering why this call for action on December 10th is still being circulated a day before the protests....isn't it too late to organize something? Well, it's not. Action against this drive toward war can and should come in all sizes and shapes. Every group, no matter   how small, can do something. Even if just 5 or 10 of you go down to the Post Office or recruiting station, after work, when it's dark, and light candles that counts. Here are just a few ideas of what you can do tomorrow:

*JOIN one of the protest activities already planned. Check

*GIVE out information and anti-war flyers. Copies of "Talking Points for Peace and Security with Iraq" are available at www.unitedforpeace.org. Imagine if 10,000 of you gave out 100 copies of that or any other anti-war literature... 1,000,000 pieces could be distributed!

*CHALLENGE war propaganda by putting a sign in your window or on your door or at your desk at work or on your backpack.

*DEMONSTRATE your opposition to war by wearing a blue and white ribbon or armband, or a button that takes a stand against this war....and wear it at work, in the supermarket, while riding public transportation.

*MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD! Phone the White House and tell them NO WAR ON IRAQ!!! 202-456-1111 Let's flood them with calls and keep their lines busy all day long.

Throughout this country a mass movement has begun to take shape. As Washington geared up for war people in every corner of the nation moved into action. One of the most striking examples of the depth of this new movement was when 133 members of the House of Representatives voted against giving president-select George W. Bush the authority to use military force whenever he so chooses. Of course it was depressing that the resolution passed, but think about what must have happened to get those 133 members to vote against the president.

Thousands of people all around the country not only made their voices heard but forced scores of representatives to vote the right way. All together, there must have been hundreds of thousands of phone calls, faxes and email messages sent to members of Congress...all in a matter of several weeks. People did not wait for a fully developed national campaign, they knew action was needed and took it. Yes, several national organizations put out calls and the internet was buzzing with messages urging people to put the pressure on. The most important thing is that the wide spread sentiment against this war was expressed and had a direct impact on the outcome of that vote. And there are others signs that this new anti-war movement has come to life: the October 6th demonstrations in 27 cities organized by Not In Our Name (with at least 35,000 people in NYC and tens of thousands in places like Los Angeles and Portland); 150,000 people in Washington, DC and upwards of another 80,000 in San Francisco on October 26th in protests organized by International ANSWER; full page ads in major daily newspapers across the nation; dozens of statement by religious leaders and denominations of all faiths, union locals and Central Labor Councils and a growing number of City Councils; and the almost daily demonstrations of all sizes by students and youth and others from all walks of life.

On October 25th, representatives of more than 50 national organizations gathered in Washington, DC and took the first steps in organizing a national campaign to stop the war. Calling ourselves United For Peace, these groups came together because they know everyone's effort will be stronger and therefore, hopefully, have a greater impact if we find the common ground for a more unified approach to our work. The point is not to subsume everyone into a new organization but rather to develop a structure that allows us to work more cooperatively and with a higher degree of coordination. It's a simple proposition and probably needed to happen a lot earlier, but by late fall enough groups and key individual players in the anti-war work were ready and able to unite in this new campaign.

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