Join WORD in upcoming actions!
This is a critical moment for all progressive people to stand against the U.S. plans for war on Syria. Based on lies, the U.S. government is charging ahead to open up a full-scale attack that will be disastrous for the Syrian people. WORD has joined in demonstrations across the country over the last week to say "No war on Syria!"
In the midst of the struggle to stop the war before it starts, WORD will also be supporting the call to free Marissa Alexander by organizing events and actions on her birthday, Sept. 14.
WORD has consistently advocated on every front in the struggle for full rights for all women. This means standing with our sisters in Syria as they face the threats of the most dangerous, most brutal war machine on the planet--based right here in the United States. It also means standing with our working-class sisters in prison, a number that grows every year. It means standing with Marissa Alexander in the face of a racist system of injustice that would sentence a woman defending herself from violence to 20 years in prison for discharging a registered gun with NO intent to kill. Her intention was to warn her attacker--a man with a history of violent behavior toward women. See below for more information on both fronts in our struggle.
No war on Syria! Take action against U.S. intervention!
The ANSWER Coalition -- an anti-war organization with which many WORD members have volunteered -- has been spearheading protests against the war in Syria across the country. This Saturday, September 7 there will be a major march from the White House to the Capitol Building to tell Congress "Vote NO on war against Syria!" Click here for details about the D.C. demonstration and here for a list of demonstrations taking place nationwide on September 7. Join WORD at these important protests to stop the war on Syria before it starts.
Free Marissa Alexander!
Marissa Alexander is in prison, sentenced to 20 years for aggravated assault. Her supposed crime? Firing a warning shot with a permitted gun to stop her abusive husband in the midst of an assault just days after she'd given birth to her daughter.
Marissa was defending herself from a man with a documented record of brutality towards women. Past girlfriends testified about this abuse at Marissa Alexander's trial. Yet the so-called justice system let this man continue to abuse women while Marissa Alexander sits in prison for defending herself.
All of this occurred in the same state where George Zimmerman was freed after murdering 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman made a bogus claim to be protected by Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law. The travesty of Marissa's imprisonment and Zimmerman's freedom exposes the arbitrary and utterly racist nature of the so-called criminal justice system in this country.
Marissa Alexander's birthday is September 14. She should be free to celebrate with her children on this day, not languishing in prison. WORD (Women Organized to Resist and Defend) is joining in the calls for actions to recognize her birthday and call for her immediate release.
Saturday, September 14 Actions
Sacramento, CA
Gather at 1pm
at Robert Matsui Federal Court House
501 I Street
Contact [email protected]
Join the Facebook event
San Francisco, CA
Gather at 4pm
at Powell & Market
Contact [email protected] or 415-375-9502
Seattle, WA
Gather at 2pm
at Westlake Park, 4th and Pine
Initiated by Seattle WORD and Pacific Northwest Alliance to Free Marissa Alexander
Contact [email protected] or 206-568-1661
Join us at one of these events, or list an action in your city.