Daily January peace vigil aimed at Obama’s agenda

Dec. 31, 2008 – Peace groups from around the region will hold a daily vigil throughout January in Hyde Park, blocks from the home of President-elect Barack Obama, to show support for the progressive agenda on which Obama ran.

"We are trying to remain hopeful, but we understand that there is tremendous pressure on Obama to step away from the positions he took during the campaign," said Dan Pearson, an organizer for Camp Hope 2009. "We want to show that there is support for him to implement all the changes that he campaigned for."

Spearheaded by Voices for Creative Nonviolence and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Kathy Kelly and joined by groups advocating immigrant rights and action on climate change, Camp Hope will maintain a daily presence at Drexel Square Park, 51st and Drexel, from Jan. 1 to Jan. 19, the day before Obama's inauguration.

Talks and discussions are scheduled throughout the month (see calendar) on topics including health care, torture, immigration reform, climate change, and economic justice, with speakers including Quentin Young, Ali Abunimah, Colonel Ann Wright, and Stephen Kinzer, as well as screenings of "Dr. Strangelove" and "Taxi to the Dark Side" and a performance by political satirist Dave Lippman.

Camp Hope sponsors are calling on Obama to take immediate action on eight issues: begin withdrawing 6,000 troops a month from Iraq, cease combat operations there, and launch a diplomatic effort with Afghanistan and Pakistan; take nuclear weapons off hair-trigger alert and work to eliminate them altogether; shut down Guantanamo and the military tribunal system; suspend deportations of immigrants and workplace raids; submit the Kyoto Protocol to Congress for ratification; issue a moratorium on home foreclosures; and launch efforts for full employment and universal health care.

The transition period has raised concerns for the peace community, Pearson said. "It seems like a lot of folks being pulled into the Obama administration are definitely part of the old guard — folks who are very much used to using military aggression to solve problems."

He's also concerned about prospects for a military escalation in Afghanistan. "No good can come from putting more weapons into that situation and definitely no good can come from launching attacks on Pakistan," he said.

"It's not good for anybody — it's pushing Pakistan into a pretty tight corner, and it's definitely not good for civilians being killed in Afghanistan and Pakistan — and it's not good for us."

A program opening Camp Hope will take place Jan. 1, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The encampment will conclude Jan. 19 with a day-long vigil at the Federal Plaza to mark Martin Luther King Day.

For more information, contact Dan Pearson at Camp Hope, 773-878-3815.