9/11 and the Afghanistan War: Marking Anniversaries with Action

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Peace Action plans an action-packed Fall across our network

Soon, our nation will reflect on the tenth anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001. A few weeks later, October 7 will mark the tenth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, now the longest war in U.S. history.

Since 2001, we have started 3 wars with 3 different countries. We have spent over $1 trillion on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan alone. We have plunged our economy into the worst crisis since the Great Depression. We have lost over 6,000 U.S. troops to combat, and for the past two years, we have lost more troops to suicide than to combat.

In addition to our Move the Money campaign work,  Peace Action activists are participating in several national projects to commemorate this tragic anniversary. We will be in cities, towns, and neighborhoods across the country creating art, hosting teach-ins, and building community. Find out how you can get involved:

www.10yearsandcounting.com

10 Years and Counting: A month of art after a decade of war

September 11 – October 7

After a decade of continuous war, it is now Ten Years and Counting.

Peace Action has partnered with 10 Years and Counting to invite artists and others to take this historic moment as inspiration and use the power of creativity to illustrate the costs of war and imagine a more peaceful world.

Alongside our other political activities, from September 11 through October 7, we’re encouraging activists across our network to create. Create art. Create poetry. Create music. Create community.

This is an opportunity to reach a new audience, build stronger relationships and broaden your community. This is an opportunity to mobilize the majority of the U.S. public that wants the troops to come home.

Create with us:

  • Find an event in your area, connect with local artists and activists making plans in your area.
  • Add your creation, gathering or event to the 10 YEARS + COUNTING calendar.
  • Submit a blog, video, artwork, music, photos or poetry.
  • Browse tool kits to help you create your own event.
  • Learn more at 10yearsandcounting.org

Decade of War Awareness Month: Host a workshop in your community

September 7 – October 7

Even after a decade of war, most Americans remain in the dark about the situation on the ground in Afghanistan. Indeed, most are unaware of the massive impact on our economy at every level. To help build a greater understanding in communities across the country, Peace Action has teamed up with several other organizations to bring you Decade of War Awareness Month.

From September 7 to October 7, we will be hosting educational workshops throughout our network. To help you host your own workshop, our friends at War Resisters League and the South Asian Solidarity Initiative have developed Bombs and Budgets, a step-by-step curriculum available for you to host your very own workshop.

Download your copy of Bombs and Budgets today and host a workshop in your community.

The workshops are divided into four areas of focus:

  1. A Living Pie Chart which encourages communities to reflect on present US federal budget priorities, as well as imagine a budget where their priorities are at the forefront.
  2. Me and You and all of the War Profiteers We Know challenges communities to expand their understanding of ‘war profiteers’, find patterns in how militarism and the US economy have evolved over the past thirty years through historical and personal timelines, and reflect on who profits most in these systems.
  3. Narratives of Liberation: Holding the Government and War Profiteers Accountable explores case studies of financial institutions and companies at the heart of our economic decline and the war economy (such as J.P. Morgan Chase Bank and Sodexo) as well as presently existing grassroots campaigns that blend these targets and take on the elected officials that enable them. Communities are then challenged to imagine how they would engage in similar work.
  4. Finally, in Occupied Afghanistan communities discuss commonly heard justifications for the continuing US/NATO occupation, learn from Afghans how occupation violence has effected them and their organizing, and model how these discussions can be taken back to where people live and work.
Download your copy today!
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  • Naomi Feldheim
    Reply

    ten years of the futility of war in Afghanistan ought to be enough.

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