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Plowshares: A Gathering Not to be Missed<\/strong><\/span> Andy Mager Leaves Peace Council for Related Project<\/strong><\/span> Stop<\/strong><\/span> the Carnage, Ground the Drones<\/strong><\/span> Civil Resistance at Hancock heats up.<\/strong><\/em> The resistance to war crimes being committed at Hancock Airbase continues with two further attempts to deliver a citizens\u2019 indictment to the base personnel. Ten were arrested on October 5 for blocking the main entrance to the base on E. Molloy Rd. On October 25, 17 were arrested as we blocked all three<\/em> known gates to the base (E. Molloy Rd., Thompson Rd. and Town Line Rd.) for a couple of hours. After being arraigned in DeWitt Town Court, all 17 were served an Order of Protection banning them from contacting Col. Earl A. Evans, Mission Support Group Commander at Hancock (whom none of us had ever met). We see this odd abuse of an Order of Protection as another attempt to quash civilian First Amendment rights.<\/p>\n Do join us for a robust Peace Outreach across the road at the Hancock main gate from 4:15 to 5 pm, Tuesday, December 4<\/strong>. We want Hancock to know that we will continue to exercise our Constitutionally guaranteed rights of assembly and expression, and that we\u2019ll continue to expose its war crimes. Keep an eye out for trial date announcements.<\/p>\n Report back from Pakistan Peace Delegation.<\/strong><\/em> In early October several members of the Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones and End the Wars joined a CodePink delegation to Pakistan. They met with local community leaders and survivors of drone strikes, and participated in an internationally publicized peace march in Waziristan.<\/p>\n On October 24 at ArtRage, over 40 Central New Yorkers heard Judy Bello recount her experience and show slides from the trip. Delegation members are speaking to classes, congregations and community groups around CNY. Contact Amelia<\/span><\/a> to arrange for one of them to speak to your group.<\/p>\n Justice for Onondaga Denied, Again<\/strong> This latest obstacle will not prevent the Onondaga from moving forward in their centuries-long quest for justice. On November 2, the Onondaga filed a petition seeking a hearing before the full 2nd Circuit. NOON will continue to stand with and support the Onondaga Nation in this work. Despite the dismissal of the case, the judges couldn\u2019t help but notice the strong community backing for the Nation, as nearly 50 supporters left the courtroom after the case was heard. Contact Andy<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n Give Thanks… <\/strong> SU Students Protest CIA Recruitment<\/strong> Donate to Your Local Peace Movement<\/strong> Partial Victory on FitzPatrick Nuke<\/strong>
\nA beautiful community of activists, conscientious consumers and fair traders will gather for a weekend of commerce and communing at the Plowshares Craftsfair and Peace Festival. Plowshares is an opportunity to step into the kind of world we\u2019re working so hard to create: a place of justice, of peace, of compassion, of environmental sustainability. Plowshares will feature over 120 diverse craftspeople, live music and entertainment, a silent auction, raffle prizes galore and tasty, healthy food. Please join us this year on Saturday, December 1, 10 am \u2013 5 pm and Sunday, December 2, 11 am \u2013 5 pm<\/strong>. Think about those people in your life that you might introduce to Plowshares this year and ask them to join you. Materials are available on our website, and we\u2019re also on Facebook. Remember that Plowshares is SPC\u2019s largest fundraiser of the year, providing funds that carry us through the long Central New York winter.<\/p>\n
\nAfter more than ten years on staff at the Peace Council, Andy Mager is bidding us farewell, sort of. Andy is leaving his regular staff position to work full-time for the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign, a project of SPC\u2019s Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (NOON). Andy was instrumental in the revival of the Peace Council when he came on staff as co-coordinator with Carol Baum in 2001, and his tenure has seen rapid growth of organizing work, staff, and resources. He leaves the organization having helped rebuild it into a recognized and respected force for peace and social justice in Syracuse (see more below<\/span><\/a>). While we are sad to see Andy go, we are thrilled for him and the Two Row Campaign, as they take off on organizing efforts to bring NOON\u2019s work to a statewide level.<\/p>\n
\n[img_assist|nid=440|title=|desc=Max Novack prepares the Drone Country Tour van. Photo: Brandon Weight|link=none|align=left|width=360|height=240]Drone Country Tour.<\/strong><\/em> On October 20 about a dozen anti-drone activists toured local drone country, caravanning to visit Lockheed Martin, Syracuse Research Corporation, and Hancock Airbase. At each site Claire Bach, Ed Kinane and Rae Kramer spoke about the roles of these players in drone attacks. Following the tour we gathered at SPC for wine and cheese.<\/p>\n
\n[img_assist|nid=441|title=|desc=NOON activists and NYC-area supporters of Onondaga Land Rights vigil after the hearing on the Onondaga Nation Appeal on October 19 in New York City. Photo: Andrew Courtney|link=none|align=right|width=360|height=241]With remarkable speed for the federal courts, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Onondaga Nation\u2019s appeal of their Land Rights Action on October 19. Just one week after hearing the case, the three judge panel repeated the same denials that we\u2019ve seen from the federal courts for the past seven years: the Onondaga \u201cwaited too long\u201d and any remedy would be \u201ctoo disruptive\u201d or unfair to the larger community. The courts remain unconcerned about the \u201cdisruptions\u201d experienced by the Onondaga through the theft of their land and ongoing efforts at cultural genocide. In response to Onondaga Nation General Counsel Joe Heath\u2019s effort to highlight the Nation\u2019s special connection to Onondaga Lake, one judge called the pollution of the lake \u201cdevelopment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nOn Thanksgiving morning, Onondaga people and neighbors gather together each year on the shore of Onondaga Lake to express thanks for the goodness of the Earth and to each other for our ongoing friendship; working side-by-side in peace and hope for healing, justice, and environmental restoration. You are invited to join us at 10 am on Thursday, November 22<\/strong>, at Willow Bay on the north shore of Onondaga Lake. Dress for the weather. We\u2019ll have light refreshments. Contact Jack, 424-1454.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The CIA is nosing around SU, looking to recruit students, but they aren\u2019t going unchallenged. On November 1, Ben Kuebrich and Brian Tackett (both graduate students at SU who are active with SPC) were joined by SPC staffers Jessica Azulay and Ursula Rozum in a protest outside a CIA recruitment session on campus. Brian was dressed as a CIA prisoner in orange with a hood over his head, kneeling near the door to the session. The rest of the group passed out fliers to participating students outlining the long history of the CIA in assassination, torture and subversion of democracy, in an effort to inform them about what kind of work they might be getting into. Ben also entered the session and raised questions to the recruiters about torture and crimes against humanity. Media coverage in the Post Standard<\/em> followed. <\/p>\n
\nYou may have received our fall fund appeal in the mail last month, but if it\u2019s still sitting in your to-do pile, this is your friendly reminder to send in that contribution. The Peace Council is people powered in true grassroots fashion, which means that there is no one but us, in our own community, to keep the lights on, the telephones ringing and the staff employed. So please, if you want to see our work continue, give as generously as you can. If you didn\u2019t receive a written appeal from us, we hope you\u2019ll consider donating nonetheless. Send checks to Syracuse Peace Council, 2013 E. Genesee St., Syracuse, NY 13210, or donate online at www.peacecouncil.net\/donate<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n
\nIn March of this year, the Peace Council joined five other organizations as part of the Alliance for a Green Economy in filing a petition with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) challenging the operating license of the FitzPatrick nuclear reactor near Oswego, NY. The reactor is the same flawed design as those that exploded in the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe, and it is the only reactor in the US without an emergency vent. In a rare move, the NRC Petition Review Board has issued an initial recommendation that the petition be accepted. However, the Board also said it was recommending an indefinite delay on a final ruling, which will allow the reactor to continue operating in its vulnerable state. We are happy that our concerns are being taken seriously, but outraged that NRC is delaying a ruling that could protect New Yorkers from a severe nuclear accident. We are calling on supporters to pressure the NRC to move on the petition by doubling the number of co-signers. Help reach our goal, visit www.agreenew<\/span><\/a>york.org<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n