The following is an archived copy of a message sent to a Discussion List run by the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
Views expressed in this archived message are those of the author, not of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
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[ Presenting plain-text part of multi-format email ] Dear friends, Yesterday morning, I had the (misfortune) of being cornered for an hour with a pro-war columnist in the local, main newspaper in Raleigh/Durham (North Carolina). He kept presenting the war in a black and white fashion: either you support the “liberation” of Iraq from Saddam Hussein and thus support this war, or you are callous towards the suffering of the Iraqis under the dictatorship and you oppose the war. All efforts I made to explain to him that this was *not* a war of “liberation” fell on deaf ears. He was only interested in: how would you work to “get ride of him”. So, I told him first to lift the tools of oppression imposed by the US on the people of Iraq (i.e. the sanctions, the constant bombardment), and then work to empower the people themselves by using life-affirming policies and not life-destroying policies. He regarded this all as little more than hogwash. When I told him that there have been numerous grassroots uprising against dictatorships, he said, basically, ‘bull.’ I would love your advice. What information should I send his way? (His article will run Wednesday, so if any information will be sent, it needs to be sent today or early tomorrow). Emotionally exhausted, -Rania We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes. - Ella Baker ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Rañia Masri, Ph.D. Director, Southern Peace Research and Education Center Institute for Southern Studies http://www.southernstudies.org <http://www.southernstudies.org/> 2009 Chapel Hill Rd. Durham, North Carolina 27707 _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk