CALENDAR LISTING / NEWS ITEM

For immediate release         September 8, 2019

Children who came into this world after 9/11 are now old enough to enlist to fight in the same wars that started, more or less, before they were born. The wars in Afghanistan (October 2001), Iraq (March 2003), Yemen (2002), Pakistan (2004), Somalia (2007), Libya (2011) and Syria (2014) continue to this day with troops being deployed to "deter Iran" and add to the never-ending carnage. Peace and Justice Works' Iraq Affinity Group is holding a visibility action on Wednesday, September 11 from 4:00-5:30 PM at SW First and Main (the west end of the Hawthorne Bridge) to call attention to this mind-bending fact and to educate the public about the harms the wars do to people, the planet, and to the budgets for domestic spending for human needs.

America's policies have not only drained the country's coffers of trillions of dollars*-1 but created never-ending wars and fears of "others" leading to rises in hate crimes and anti-immigrant backlash. Another gift to the current generation: the US military is the world's #1 polluter.*-2

It is time to Stop All the Wars, End the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, and Bring All the Troops Home Now!!!

This event is endorsed by Recruiter Watch PDX, War Resisters League-Portland and others.

For more information or to get involved contact the Peace and Justice Works Iraq Affinity Group at 503-236-3065 (voice or text), email iraq@pjw.info , or visit the website at http://www.pjw.info. A flyer is available at
http://www.pjw.info/911_18yl_flyer.pdf

Footnotes:

*1- Costs of War- US Budgetary Costs of the Post-9/11 Wars
  Through FY 2019: $5.9 Trillion Spent and Obligated
  Watson Institute at Brown University
  https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/files/cow/imce/papers/2018/Crawford_Costs%20of%20War%20Estimates%20Through%20FY2019%20.pdf

*2- US Military is World's Biggest Polluter
  EcoWatch, May 15, 2017
  https://www.ecowatch.com/military-largest-polluter-2408760609.html

A community member shared these photos of the action
in November 2019; we posted them Jan. 7, 2020.
(Click to enlarge):