Code Pink Journals CodePINK Journals

Work 4 Peace,Hold All Life Sacred,Eliminate Violence! I am on my mobile version of the door-to-door, going town-to-town holding readings/gatherings/discussions of my book "But What Can I Do?" This is my often neglected blog mostly about my travels since 9/11 as I engage in dialogue and actions. It is steaming with my opinions, insights, analyses toward that end of holding all life sacred, dismantling the empire and eliminating violence while creating the society we want ALL to thrive in

Monday, May 05, 2008

Grandmothers say "TAKE ME, NOT MY GRANDCHILD"

We had a wonderful Grandmothers action at the MRS today! Grandmothers showed up, walked the picket line, and blocked the doorway!

The marine recruiters locked the front doors and refused to speak with our Grandmothers, refused to invite them inside to talk or to come outside to talk, refused to recruit our Grandmothers.

The Berkeley police, stepping up to protect the Marines from Grandmothers, stood in a line in front of the doorway, attempting to block our Grandmothers from knocking on the door and entering.

The action began around 10:00am this morning when 87 year old Nettie placed her wheelchair directly in the entrance and refused to move. Police sprang to the defense of the Marines and ordered Nettie to move. She refused.

Police told Nettie she was trespassing. She said we were trespassing in Iraq. Police told Nettie she was blocking the door. She said she wanted to block youth from being recruited. Police told Nettie to move. She said she'd move after the marines did.

Police tried everything, short of arrest, to get Nettie to move. Nettie refused. Nettie spoke strongly, from her heart, for a long time. Police tried unsuccessfully to convince Nettie to give up her post blocking the doorway.

Nettie finally told police that she was going to leave in about 10 minutes more anyway. Police backed off and watched the continued protest from several feet away.

By noon, 90+ year old Fran Rachel and 80+ year old Dolores Helman had arrived along with about a dozen other grandmothers and CodePINK supporters. Police had lined up once again in front of the doorway, blocking the entrance to the MRS.

The Grandmothers decided to march in a picket line in front of the MRS, singing and chanting. As soon as there was a slight opening - the 6'3" police officer shifted sideways - Fran darted in and began to knock on the door. Dolores followed on her heels and the rest of the Grandmothers closed ranks around these two courageous Grandmothers wanting to speak with recruiters and willing to risk arrest.

Once again, police spoke for over 20 minutes with Fran and Dolores as the Grandmothers knocked on the door, called up, and beckoned to the Marines holed up inside.

The Marines refused to allow the Grandmothers to come inside or to come out to speak with our elders. The police constantly attempted to stand between the Grandmothers and the Marines front door.

Fran and Dolores kept up a steady dialogue with the officers and press, telling everyone why they were there and talking about the promises they made to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren to work their hardest to END WAR NOW!

It was quite moving. The police threatened to cite these women but never did.

The Grandmothers promised to return next Monday at 10:00am with more Grandmothers and supporters and to stay until the Marines welcome them inside, invite them to dialogue, and recruit Grandmothers instead of grandchildren!

So mark Monday the 12th on your calendars! And call us at 510-524-2776 if you are willing to stand with the courageous Grandmothers next Monday! They are asking everyone for your support - for 15 minutes, an hour or longer!

We will post photos and a u-tube as soon as possible.

$339 million a day for war - $750 million to solve present hunger crisis

what is WRONG with us u.s. americans?

we are content with giving corporate war profiteers and the military $339,000,000 dollars a DAY - and yet, the world needs a mere $750,000,000 to solve the present world hunger crisis - and we are unwilling to do this.

how will we ever be able to get our souls back if we cannot even commit TWO days of war funding to ending this hunger crisis?

what happened to our right minds, the minds who believe that preventing hunger is more important than occupying a sovereign nation?

why do womyn have to do EVERYTHING!

Meg wrote: I believe women need to work toward healing kids who have lost their souls in combat. they are psychologically destroyed and Safe Spaces to tell their stories and engage in Creation are necessary... and yet... i could not find ANY services for this after googling "women healers for Iraqi Veterans," and the like.

can someone explain this?

YES it is necessary to march and protest and fight and fight against this inane and horrendous war. but truly, please, where are the mammas who will take on the duty of putting love back into the hearts of these beings?


hi meg - weeeellllll, i have to ask many questions

for instance, why do we womyn have to do EVERYTHING? men chose to go to war, chose to destroy their souls, as well as the lives of many other humans, and then it is OUR responsibility as womyn to heal them? hmmmmm

we are so overwhelmed, challenged, besieged now attempting (not so very successfully but we are determined to prevail soon!) to prevent those very men from taking that step in the first place - which is the only real way to prevent them from destroying their souls and taking life - it is hard to fathom yet another monumental task on my plate at least.

i know there are womyn who are dedicating their lives to this very task - they might not be on the internet but they are on the gi rights hotlines and ccco, etc.

i also have other priorities - i want to heal the womyn who have been the victims of these men - the ones who are raped, tortured, beaten, their children destroyed as well - these womyn are my priority - and if/when i have energy left over, i will move on to the men.

but i believe the men have to heal themselves and be responsible for their own healing - womyn have been trying for at least 10,000 years in some cultures to care for men and clean up after them - i don't have much hope for doing things the same way still for this generation. i think the best way we can help men heal is by healing ourselves and taking over so that those who believe it is wrong to kill, torture, rape NO MATTER WHAT- those are the ones who lead this world - not men who are willing to justify killing to get what they want!

peace, power, fierce sisterhood, zanne