Sat 4/5 @ 10AM-5PM
Following the post-9/11 invasion of Afghanistan and while the Bush/Cheney administration was beating the war drums over Iraq, longtime peace, social justice, and human rights advocate Medea Benjamin co-founded Code Pink: Women for Peace.
That was 2002. Needless to say, peace has not been achieved. Since then, the war drums have been beating over Iran and Syria and Ukraine. Benjamin has gotten a reputation for her passion and her willingness to be confrontational and aggressive to get her point across. She has been deported (from other countries), ejected, and arrested.
About five years ago, Benjamin began to focus much of her attention on one aspect of warfare: unmanned drones, which often erroneously target civilian populations. She has interrupted a speech by President Obama to speak her mind on the topic. She has written a book called Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control, and she travels extensively, speaking and teaching on the topic.
The Imagine Peace Task Force is bringing her to northeast Ohio to be the keynote speaker at a drone teach-in at the West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church in Rocky River.
Peter Lems, the national director of education & advocacy on Iraq and Afghanistan for the American Friends Service Committee, will be a plenary speaker. Former head of Veterans for Peace Mike Ferner will speak as well. The day will also feature workshops and panels with participants from the AFSC, the American Civil Liberties Union, Cleveland Non Violence Network, Cleveland Peace Action, Veterans for Peace, and others.
The whole day is free and open to the public. People are welcome to come for all or any part of it. Lunch will be provided.
Go to the Facebook event page for more information.