Over 70 students representing 13 student groups and students in a course titled “Nonviolent Struggle in Theory and Practice” came together at American University for a night dedicated to how militarism fuels the climate crisis and vice versa. Isabella Brooke led the event as part of her internship with CODEPINK this fall.
The speakers ranged from a variety of lived experiences incorporating facts and analysis but also personal stories and legacies their own families suffer from due to militarism & the climate crisis. Issues ranged from freeing Palestine, Pakistan recent floods and the “war on terror” there, militarization of the border, the poverty draft, nuclear weapons, Indigenous sovereignty, Red Hill’s navy water crisis, imperialism, racial justice all through the lens of climate justice and anti-militarism.
The teach-in’s goal was to educate while also being interactive and action-oriented. After every few speakers there were student facilitators w/ questions engaging students to talk through small groups.
This event also included calls to action for students to join different clubs/organizations, attend upcoming events, and to participate in rallies and protests in Washington DC that were concrete and accessible to students.
