1.17.2008

let them stay: jan 25-26 days of action update

Plans for the January 25 and 26 Days of Action in support of US war resisters in Canada continue apace.

Unfortunately, so do the deportation proceedings.

Four resisters now face deportation, including two families with young children. I'll resort to cliche: it's a race against time. Will the united opposition adopt a proposal to Let Them Stay (as recommended by the Committee on Citizenship and Immigration) before the final deportation orders come down?

In the US, on January 25, Courage to Resist, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Families Speak Out and other peace groups will hold vigils and demonstrations outside Canadian Consulates in several cities. You can join them in San Francisco, Seattle, Washington DC or New York, and possibly some other places. Details here.

In Canada, January 26 events are being added all the time, including Joshua Key, of The Deserter's Tale, speaking in Saskatoon, and a letter-writing campaign in Thunder Bay.

The Toronto event now includes Shirley Douglas, Bob Rae (our latest Liberal supporter!), Olivia Chow (patron saint of the resisters), Vietnam draft resister and musician Bill King, musician Chris Brown (this one, not this one), and authors Lawrence Hill and John Hagan.

Everyone who attends the event will be asked to write a letter to Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion, then we'll all march to the post office to mail them. Have you ever heard of a march on a post office? We think it's a fun, participatory and somewhat goofy idea.

It will also be very effective. By the time Parliament resumes on January 29, Dion will have received hundreds - possibly thousands - of letters about the resisters. Those letters will reinforce and support the Campaign's persistent lobbying efforts.

It's a very tense and scary time for these brave soldiers for peace, and for their families. But we believe we can get this thing done.

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