June 3rd Canada's House of Commons voted (non-binding motion) in favor of Canada being a safe harbor for war resisters. Douglas Glynn (The Barrie Examiner) quotes Corey stating, "The motion is not legally binding, though the majority of Parliament voted for it. I realized innocent people were being killed. I tried to quit the military while in Iraq," he said, "but my commander told me I was just stressed out and needed some R and R (rest and relaxation), because I was doing a job I was not trained to do. I went home on leave and said I was not coming back." So that's where it stands currently.
Canada's War Resister Support Campaign is calling for a "NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION, Wednesday July 2nd:"
STOP THE DEPORTATION OF U.S. WAR RESISTER COREY GLASS
On July 2nd…
CALL MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION DIANE FINLEY!
Details
U.S. Iraq War resister Corey Glass is still facing deportation on July 10th, despite the Parliament of Canada having voted in favour of a motion to let Corey and other U.S. war resisters stay.
The federal government and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration must respect the will of Parliament and implement the motion which calls on the government to "immediately implement a program to allow conscientious objectors and their immediate family members […] to apply for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and … the government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions … against such individuals."
On July 2nd, the War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on all supporters to call Minister Diane Finley and ask her to:
• STOP deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and all U.S. Iraq war resisters; and
• IMPLEMENT the motion adopted by Canada’s Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters to apply for permanent resident status.
Here are the numbers to call:
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley
613.996.4974
MP Diane Finley's constituency office (Simcoe):
519.426.3400
Or email her at:
minister@cic.gc.ca
or
finled1@parl.gc.ca
* * *
It is more urgent than ever that we send a message to the Canadian government that Canada needs to welcome US men and women who refuse to participate in the illegal and immoral war in Iraq. There are three actions you can take today to help support the war resisters.
- Sign the petition in support of the war resisters;
- Contact the federal government and make your views known; and
- Send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.
Petition
Add your name to the petition calling for the federal government to implement a provision to allow war resisters to stay in Canada. Initial signatories include June Callwood, David Suzuki, Maude Barlow, Shirley Douglas, Naomi Klein, Ann-Marie MacDonald, and many others.
Please download a copy of the petition, sign it, circulate it and return it to the campaign.
Write a letter to the editor
Letters to the editor are an important piece of the public debate on this issue. The majority of Canadians opposed the war in Iraq and support the provision of sanctuary for US soldiers. Send a copy of your letter to the campaign to resisters@sympatico.ca.
In the US, Courage to Resist is planning "July 9th actions at Canadian Consulates nationwide:"
Join a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday, July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA
San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net
Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com
Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net
New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org
Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org
Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA
Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com
Help organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston, Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at 510-488-3559.
Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage to Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States.
Recently on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the Conservative government may disregard the motion.
Iraq combat veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th.
We will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and other current and future war resisters.
Join Courage to Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be announced).
We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!"
http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Stacey wondered if we could note that the Nader-Gonzalez ticket has redesigned their issues page?
Twelve Issues that Matter for 2008
Remember, these twelve issues represent the tip of the political iceberg. But they are indicative of the corporate domination of the Democratic and Republican parties. Click on any of the issues in the table below for more information the issues that matter for 2008, or find out more about the Nader/Gonzalez position on other important issues, including the environment, social, fiscal, market, labor, political and foreign policy.
| | Nader | Obama | McCain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adopt single payer national health insurance | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Cut the huge, bloated, wasteful military budget | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| No to nuclear power, solar energy first | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Aggressive crackdown on corporate crime and corporate welfare | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Open up the Presidential debates | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Adopt a carbon pollution tax | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Reverse U.S. policy in the Middle East | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Impeach Bush/Cheney | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Repeal the Taft-Hartley anti-union law | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Adopt a Wall Street securities speculation tax | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Put an end to ballot access obstructionism | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
| Work to end corporate personhood | On the table | Off the table | Off the table |
Shift the Power
Stacey notes that Nader spoke of this issue page on ABC's This Week Sunday. From yesterday's snapshot:"I think the two parties are hurting our country," said Nader of the Democratic and Republican Parties, "and they need more competition. As we see on our website VoteNader.org, you will see the issues we have on the table are majoritarian issues: single-payer health care, do something about the wasteful military budget, labor law reform, consumer protection . . . living wage, etc. . . . The problem is, George, there's too much political bigotry against small parties and candidates. You see it in these huge ballot access laws which we're trying to overcome now with our roadtrippers, very, very costly. We're excluded from the debates. Why do we ration debates? We ought to have staggered debates. You've got Wimbledon, the sixtieth seed gets a chance, you've got the NCAA, the sixtieth team gets a chance. You have a huge roll of wealth on it. We're appealing to the people in this country. . . . We're appealing to the people in this country who want more choices on the ballot and Nader-Gonzalez provides those choices."
The Nader-Gonzalez campaign will be on the ticket in Illinois:
Illinois marks the third state where Nader/Gonzalez will be on the ballot in 2008, but did not qualify in 2004. Arizona and Hawaii are the other two. Presently, the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign has seven teams in seven states collecting signatures for ballot access. Sunday, on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” Mr. Nader announced his campaign will be on the ballot in 45 states.
In 2004 the Democratic Party and their allies initiated frivolous lawsuits aimed at keeping the Nader/Camejo ticket off the ballots in 18 states, denying voters the choice of an Independent candidacy for President and Vice President. In 2008 the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign is cautioning the Democratic Party not to misuse the court system with baseless political challenges and to honor the will of the people for more choices on the ballot.
Meanwhile The Hartford Courant's "Nadar Makes Campaign Stop" notes: "Campaign volunteer Peter Ellmer was able to solicit several pledges on Sunday from people who are willing to collect signatures to get Nader on the Connecticut ballot."
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
iraq
corey glass
abc
this week
