Democracy Now!
Thur., March 6, 2003
ATTN: ALL STATIONS
From: Democracy Now!
Re: Rundown
Date: 03-06-03
PRSS Channel: A67.7
9:00-9:01 Billboard:
Iraq Journal: The ghosts of Safwan, A report from the Iraq/Kuwait
border
Over 100,000 students walk out and protest war around the
nation and the globe: we’ll hear from students Los Angeles,
New York, Madison, Wisconsin, Buffalo, Stanford, as well as
in Australia, Canada and Ireland
International human shields prepare for war in Iraq: We
talk to John Ross and Kathy Kelly in Baghdad
New York man arrested at shopping mall for wearing“Give
Peace A Chance” t-shirt: Over 150 respond by showing
up in similar shirts at the mall
9:01-9:06 Headlines
9:06-9:07 One Minute Music Break
9:07 9:20 IRAQ JOURNAL: THE GHOSTS OF SAFWAN, A REPORT
FROM THE IRAQ/KUWAIT BORDER
The total number of US troops in the Gulf region surrounding
Iraq is now reported to exceed more than a quarter of a million.
Some 90,000 US troops are stationed just miles away from
Iraq in the desert of Kuwait. The Iraqi forces along the border
will likely be among the first to face an American invasion.
Meanwhile, in Baghdad, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein chaired
a meeting of the country’s top military and political
leadership today. This comes just 24 hours before chief UN
weapons inspector Hans Blix will deliver a briefing to the
UN Security Council that Baghdad views as a make or break
moment in the current crisis. Baghdad has begun implementing
a number of internal security measures.
- Jeremy Scahill, Democracy Now! correspondent, reporting
from Baghdad
Tape: Iraq Journal. Democracy Now correspondent Jeremy Scahill
and filmmaker Jacquie Soohen recently traveled to the Iraq/Kuwait
border to the village of Safwan.
Contact: iraqjournal.org
9:20-9:21 One Minute Music Break
9:21-9:40 INTERNATIONAL HUMAN SHIELDS PREPARE FOR WAR IN
IRAQ: WE TALK TO JOHN ROSS AND KATHY KELLY IN BAGHDAD
The Bush administration says that human shields will not
prevent US bombs from falling on Baghdad.
Last month, War Secretary Donald Rumsfeld called Iraq's
deployment of human shields "murder" and "a
violation of the laws of armed conflict and a crime against
humanity."
Army Gen. Tommy Franks, who would run the military campaign
against Iraq, said that U.S. war planners would not "necessarily"
take the human shields into account.
And Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican from South Carolina
has asked John Ashcroft to provide him with a legal assessment
of American human shields going to or already in Iraq. Fox
News reported yesterday that Graham is “vehement in
his opposition to Americans who go to Iraq and calls them
‘treasonous.’ He said he believes the full force
of the law should be applied to those American citizens who
give aid or comfort to our enemies.”
Yesterday, Juan Gonzalez and I spoke to Kathy Kelly of Voices
in the Wilderness and writer John Ross who are both choosing
to remain in Baghdad in spite of an imminent attack by US
forces.
- Kathy Kelly, human shield in Iraq, co-founder of Voices
in the Wilderness, and two-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee
Link: www.vitw.org
- John Ross, human shield, journalist and author of several
books including The War Against Oblivion: The Zapatista
Chronicles, and Rebellion From the Roots
9:49-9:41 One Minute Music Break
9:45-9:53 OVER 100,000 STUDENTS WALK OUT AND PROTEST WAR
AROUND THE NATION AND THE GLOBE: WE’LL HEAR FROM STUDENTS
LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK, MADISON, WISCONSIN, BUFFALO, STANFORD,
AS WELL AS IN AUSTRALIA, CANADA AND IRELAND
Hundreds of thousands of high school and college students
walked out of their classes yesterday to protest the Bush
Administration’s plans to invade Iraq.
The protest was organized by students in the US, but students
around the globe walked out of classes in solidarity with
their American counterparts.
Australians kicked off the day with over 20,000 students
marching.
In Spain, tens of thousands of students protested Prime
Minister Jose Maria Aznar’s support for President Bush.
In Paris, police say as many as 20,000 people rallied, many
of them students.
In Sweden, 5,000 students rallied. Thousands more rallied
in various cities across Switzerland. 300 students marched
to the U.S. Embassy in the Swiss capital, Bern.
In London, thousands of high school students gathered outside
Prime Minister Tony Blair’s residence, and some of them
tried to scale the gates.
Some 2,000 Palestinians, mostly students, demonstrated in
Damascus, Syria.
Actions also took place in Canada, Bulgaria, Greece, Brazil
and Scotland.
Here in the US, tens of thousands of students from over
400 high school and college campuses held ‘Books Not
Bombs’ actions yesterday. This according to the umbrella
group that organized the protest, the National Youth and Student
Coalition.
Some campuses saw thousands turn out for rallies; some schools
experienced only a few students walking out. Some schools
cracked down on students while at others, professors cancelled
classes to show their support.
University of New Mexico students marched through classroom
buildings, urging students in class to join them. The demonstrators
also went to the ROTC building, the president's house and
through the engineering complex and the Institute for Space
and Nuclear Power Studies, chanting, "Keep war research
off our campus." Then they blocked a busy street in front
of the university.
Well, we’ll let the students themselves tell their
stories.
Tape: Students around the world walk out in protest of war,
March 5, 2003
9:45-9:58 NEW YORK MAN ARRESTED AT SHOPPING MALL FOR WEARING
“GIVE PEACE A CHANCE” T-SHIRT: OVER 150 RESPOND
BY SHOWING UP IN SIMILAR SHIRTS AT THE MALL
On Monday a father and son went shopping at a mall outside
of Albany. The trip ended with the father arrested and in
handcuffs.
The two had bought anti-war t-shirts at the mall. Stephen
Downs shirt read “Give Peace a Chance” and“Peace
on Earth.” His son, Roger, had a shirt read“Let
Inspections Work” and “No War With Iraq.”
After buying the t-shirts. They put them on. And went to
eat in the food court. That’s when a mall security guard
approach the two and requested they remove the shirts. Stephen
said no. The mall called the police. And soon Stephen was
in handcuffs, arrested on trespassing charges which could
result in two weeks in jail.
Yesterday 150 peace supporters gathered at the mall to protest.
Everyone was wearing peace t-shirts. There were no arrests.
Within hours the mall called the police to request the trespassing
charges be dropped. We talk to Roger Downs and Erin O’Brien,
who organized yesterday’s protest.
- Roger Downs, threatened with arrest for wearing a shirt
that read “Let the Inspections Work” and “No
War With Iraq.”
- Erin O”Brien, organizer of Guilderland shopping
mall protest
9:58-9:59 Outro and Credits
For a copy of today's program, call 1 (800) 881 2359. Our
website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Kris Abrams, Mike Burke, Angie
Karran, Ana Nogueira and Alex Wolfe. Mike Di Filippo is our
engineer and webmaster.
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