May General Membership Meeting
At our May meeting, Margot Smith, convener of the Berkeley Gray Panthers, presented her video of a recent trip to Iran she had taken with 22 other members of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, the oldest US peace organization. The mission of the group was to serve as a civilian US delegation, reaching out in friendship and representing a different face of American society.
Iran’s population of 70 million comprises many different tribes speaking various languages, obviously making it a challenge to govern. Added to this is the fact that it is a Shiite country bordering on 14 other countries, most of them Sunni. Margot emphasized that US policies, such as overthrowing a democratic government to install the Shah, backing Iraq’s use of mustard gas against Iran and thus killing or maiming some 100,000 Iranians, and our present warlike posturing, have added to this instability, bolstering militaristic reactionary forces and silencing progressive voices.
Recommended reading: Shirin Ibadi, Iran Awakening. Margot also has copies of the video for viewing by individuals or groups. Call 510-548-9696.
In June Marie Harrison, from Greenaction, will join us as we discuss SF’s recent moves to go Green and whether this is the real thing or just feel-good cosmetics, as Bayview-Hunters Point continues to struggle with toxic waste and displacement issues.
View a David Broncoccio Now program on a similar Iran trip by the American Friends Service Committee.
Oil, Geopolitics, and the Coming War on Iran
Chemical Weapons, the US, and Iraq: What the New York Times Left Out
Congratulations..
to Gray Panthers member Denise D' Anne, named an Unsung Hero by the urban environmentalist group San Francisco Tomorrow for her many years of work helping to save our planet.