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CAN Midwest Conference a resounding success |
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Written by Pete Rhomberg
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Sunday, April 27 2008 |
On April 18th-20th, over 150 antiwar activists from across the Midwest traveled to Iowa City, Iowa to join the Campus Antiwar Network for a Midwest Antiwar Conference. One of several regional antiwar conferences hosted by the Campus Antiwar Network this spring across the nation, the Midwest Conference helped show that the Midwest is the breadbasket for antiwar activism!
The weekend featured numerous workshops and speakers. On the morningof Saturday, April 19th, two Campus Antiwar Network members and oneIraq Veteran Against the War member spoke about the need for immediatewithdrawal, one of the main demands of the Campus Antiwar Network. Therest of the day was full of workshops, ranging from activist art(“Artivism”) to the issue of Palestine.
One of the most pressing questions on the minds of Midwest activists,and antiwar activists across the nation, is the issue of directaction. With the Republican National Convention coming toMinneapolis/St-Paul in September, and the work that groups like RNCWelcoming Committee are putting into protesting the event, many antiwaractivists are questioning the best tactics to use to effectivelyprotest. This debate was manifest at the Midwest Conference, wherethree workshops were dedicated to talking about Direct Action and theRNC Protests. The workshops were marked by excellent, engaging debatesabout the definition of Direct Action and its place in the antiwarmovement as a whole, as well as the tactics that the RNC WelcomingCommittee and other organizations plan to use to “Crash theConvention.” Many in CAN, and unaffiliated activists, came away fromthe weekend with a better idea about when and where to use DirectAction, and discussion has already begun regarding CAN’s plans at theRNC protest, and to a lesser extant at the Democratic NationalConvention in Denver.
Sunday April 20th was a powerful day. 13 Midwest members of IraqVeterans Against the War held a mini-Winter Soldier hearing during themorning. Their testimony was incredibly powerful and engaging, and wascovered by numerous local and state news papers. That afternoon, thewas an antiwar rally and march through Iowa City with the more than 150antiwar activists chanting slogans such as “Whose Streets? OurStreet! Whose War? Their War!” and “No Justice, No Peace! US out ofthe Middle East!” The march culminated in a die-in in Iowa City’spedestrian mall, and an energetic rally.
In all, the conference was a huge success. A number of new CANchapters are expected to form out of the event, and Midwest CANchapters were able to form strong bonds with other antiwarorganizations, such as Students for the Democratic Society.
In the past year, we have seen a huge resurgence of the Campus AntiwarNetwork across the nation. This conference has shown that in theMidwest, the antiwar movement is growing by the day, and shows no signof stopping!
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This story can also be found at the University of Illinois CAN blog. |
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