PRESS ADVISORY

Oct. 23, 2015   

Contacts:

Toby Blome,  510-541-6874, [email protected]

Martha Hubert,  [email protected]

CODEPINK: Women for Peace Hosting Week of Drone Protests at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada, Civil Disobedience Planned

Where: Creech AFB, Southeast Gate, Indian Springs, Nevada – (One hour north of LV, along Hwy 95)

When: Twice daily, Oct. 26-Oct. 30. (during rush hour traffic), Mon.-Fri., 6-8am and 3-5pm

Over the course of this week, women from around the country are converging at the gates of Creech Air Force Base to bring grievances and express opposition to the U.S. military for participating in CIA's extra-judicial illegal assassination drone program. Local Nevada activists join others from at least 4 states for extended protest during commute hours. The full schedule of events for each day is listed below.

Due to the recent leaked U.S. military's documents detailed in the Intercept report the horrendous brutality and injustices of the U.S. drone assassination program that have been suspected for years due to evidence gathered by independent researchers, we now know that these crimes are fully corroborated by the U.S. military's very own data. This has been revealed:

1. That the U.S. remotely murders human beings because they "appear tall," by drone surveillance, or because they are "linked" to a suspicious cell phone, has led to the deaths of innumerable innocent human beings, including many children.  

2. That 9 out of 10 targets are "unintended targets" and other shocking facts leaked by these papers, call for these war crimes to be fully investigated and demand prosecution and sentencing under U.S. and International laws.

Toby Blome, one of the organizers of the week long protest, said "There should be an immediate moratorium of all drone strikes, and a full investigation by an independent Congressional committee."

Schedule

Daily themes are planned, using creative visuals and props, and large banners, including a giant mourning mother puppet (to express the sorrow of lost lives), Day of the Dead altar to honor those lives stolen from U.S. drone strikes, a Funeral Procession, a Day to Celebrate Whistle-blowers. (see details below)

In light of these recent revelations, at some undisclosed time, activists may again risk arrest to attempt to deliver a letter to Col. Case Cunningham, 432nd Wing Commander, asking him to publicly call for a moratorium on all further drone strikes, or to step down and resign and refuse to participate any further in these illegal and unethical drone killings, which are, without a doubt,  crimes against humanity.

Some of the activists will also drive down to Las Vegas daily to support the 14 anti-drone defendants facing trials in the afternoons, M-F, related to earlier protests at Creech last spring, while participating in SHUT DOWN CREECH.

In addition there will be other Anti-drone activities planned within Las Vegas proper and direct action at Creech AFB, to be disclosed at a later date, named "WE WANT PEACE, NOT GLOBAL POLICE!"

Please note that there are other "surprise actions" planned that can't be advertised early in the week.  Please stay alert to upcoming Press notices.

Monday:

am: NO DRONES: "Pink it Out" Day  

(Stop killer drones will be our theme all week...but this day we'll emphasize it!)

DRONES MAKE ENEMIES!   DRONE ATTACKS ARE WAR CRIMES!

pm: War is Not Green.  Visuals will show Environmental effects of prolonged war.

(Depleted Uranium, Toxic waste dumping, excessive fossil fuel usage, etc. (the US Military uses more fossil fuel than any other institution o earth)

Tuesday:

am: Funeral March/Mothers say No to War  

Protesters dressed in black with white masks will process up & down highway near Creech AFB,

as hundreds of military commuters arrive in the morning. Drums will keep the somber beat, to emphasize the human losses and insanity of perpetual warfare.  Coffins marking all the countries that the U.S. is currently bombing will be displayed.  (Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Somalia, Yemen via the Saudis.)

pm:  Honoring Whistleblowers - focus on Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Brandon Bryant (former Drone Operator), and the Drone Papers Whistleblower. Messaging: Whistleblowing is NOT a Crime!  Democracy depends on Whislteblowers to thrive!

Wednesday

am:  Day of the Dead - CODEPINK will display an altar to drone victims to honor their lives.  Protestors will wear black clothing and skeleton masks, decorative face painting, in the spirit of the Day of the Dead rituals, etc.  (The altar may be displayed all week, to remember those lives that were stolen brutally by hellfire missiles).

pm: Surveillance is a Crime. Stop the Spying

Messaging: "Drone Surveillance is not Freedom, Home or Abroad" and "One Nation Under Surveillance."

Thursday:

am:  Wear White with Blue Scarf (thebluescarf.org)  www.JourneyToSmile.org   ENOUGH!! campaign.  To support "ENOUGH!,"  the campaign started by the Afghan Peace Volunteers,

activists will don white clothing and sky blue scarves to stand in solidarity for the call to end war worldwide.  "War is an Act of Lunacy."   "Abolish War."

pm:  Stop All the Violence (linking racism in police and military violence) combined with GI Resistance theme.

Banner:  From Ferguson to Iraq, Pakistan to Oakland: BLACK & MUSLIM LIVES MATTER!

Friday:

am:  FROM THE HEART - Big Pink it Out Closing Day!

(messages:  Abolish War!  CREATE PEACE,

Theme will return to an emphasis on Stopping Drone Killing.

pm:  Fly Kites, not Drones - Activists will end the week with upbeat, positive messaging, and will bring kites and wear colorful clothing, modelling the world they want to see. Make Peace, NOT WAR!  Make Music, NOT WAR!.....