[pjw] EVENT REMINDER: Why is Oregon's National Guard Headed to Syria 10 Years into the US War? Fri 9/27/24 5:00 PM

[Peace and Justice Works]

Hi again

Just a reminder at the halfway point between initially announcing the 
special Friday Rally on September 27 and the day-of. Despite our vast 
archive of signs here, I have still only found one "Keep Oregon's Guard in 
Oregon" sign and we only have about three regarding getting the US out of 
Syria. So if you have those signs are ARE coming to the rally, please 
bring them. If you have them and are NOT coming to the rally, let's see if 
we can get them here to the office somehow. If you don't have them, you 
probably already stopped reading this. :)

I have added a paragraph to the announcement about the 2024 letter to the 
Governor, which is now properly linked from the PJW home page, the Iraq 
AG page, and on the Troops Home Campaign page.

Please share out the announcement

https://pjw.info/syria10yl.html

and the flyer

https://pjw.info/syria10yl_flyer.pdf

Some folks are going to be putting flyers out at County Library locations 
in the coming week. Do you have a favorite coffee shop or area bulletin 
board where you can post one?

Thanks
dan handelman
peace and justice works iraq affinity group


Peace and Justice Works
    Iraq Affinity Group
    PO Box 42456
    Portland, OR   97242
    (503) 236-3065  (Office- call or text)
    iraq at pjw.info
    http://www.pjw.info/Iraq.html

                 Why is Oregon's National Guard Headed to Syria
                            10 Years into the US War?
                       Friday, September 27, 2024 5:00 PM
               at the Weekly Friday Rally for Peace and Justice
               Pioneer Courthouse Square, SW Yamhill and Broadway
                  please mask up and stay distanced for safety

     An event on Friday, September 27 will mark 10 years since the US began
     bombing Syria on September 22, 2014, and will raise questions about why
     members of Oregon's National Guard are being deployed into this
     undeclared war zone. There is no specific congressional, United Nations
     or Syrian authorization for US troops to be stationed in that country.
     Titled "Why is Oregon's National Guard Headed to Syria 10 Years into
     the US War?", the event is a specially themed Friday Rally for Peace
     and Justice to be held at 5 PM at Pioneer Courthouse Square at the
     corner of SW Yamhill and Broadway. The rally has occurred every week
     since November 2001, so nearly 1200 weeks and 23 years.

     The US bombed Syria in 2014 as it expanded its war against the Islamic
     State in Iraq. It has since set up as many as a dozen bases including
     one called "Mission Support Site Conoco," showing that America's
     presence is really about access to oil, not freedom or democracy.

     The deployment of 230 Oregon Guard members to Iraq and Syria began in
     mid-August 2024 with the troops heading to Oklahoma for training before
     they land in those two countries. Like Syria, where there are currently
     about 900 US troops, the 2500 troops in Iraq are not specifically
     authorized by any act of Congress.

     On August 22, 2024 eleven (later joined by another six) Oregon-based
     groups sent a letter to Governor Tina Kotek, asking her not to deploy
     National Guard troops to undeclared war zones, shortly after the news
     announced that guard members were on the way to Iraq and Syria.

     The Friday Rally for Peace and Justice began on a weekly basis shortly
     after the invasion of Afghanistan. Portland Peaceful Response Coalition
     began to gather at Pioneer Courthouse Square at 5 PM every Friday and
     hosted until March, 2020 when the COVID pandemic hit. PJW's Iraq
     Affinity Group has hosted since that time. The event is coordinated by
     Peace and Justice Works Iraq Affinity Group. For more information, or
     if your group would like to cosponsor or endorse this event, contact
     Peace and Justice Works at 503-236-3065 or iraq at pjw.info.

     Read more about the ongoing Troops Home Campaign at
     https://pjw.info/troopshomecampaign.html .