[NYTr] Bush Regime Yanks Permission for Sept Tent City, Cites "Sudden Resodding"

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

International Action Center / Troops Out Now Coalition - Aug 25, 2007
http://www.troopsoutnow.org

Encampment to Stop the War Sept 22-29 

The Government is trying to silence antiwar resistance in September

Defend our right to erect antiwar tents on the Capitol Mall!

Three months ago, the Troops Out Now Coalition applied to the National 
Parks Service for permits to erect an anti-war tent city on the Mall 
across from the Capitol in Washington DC from September 22 to September 
29, as a build up to the March against the war at home and abroad on 
September 29.

As some of you might recall, we organized a tent city (encampment) on 
this same area last spring, as a part of the fight to end all war
funding.

In a meeting with representatives of the National Parks Service, on 
Thursday, August 23, we were informed for the first time that we would 
not be allowed to erect the tents because suddenly, it had been decided 
that all of the areas on the Mall where tents could be erected would be 
fenced off and would under go "re-soding" at the very time that we 
planned to use the mall.

We don't believe that it's a coincidence that the Mall area closest to 
the Capitol is suddenly off limits to protest during the very time when 
Congress will again be voting to spend another $145 billion dollars on 
the war and occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Everyone knows that 
September is going to be a crucial month for the struggle to end this 
criminal war. The anti-war movement has been mobilizing all summer for 
the fall.

Momentum for the September 22-29 Encampment to Stop the War and the 
September 29 March on Washington is growing, with more than 70 
organizing centers and 32 states across the U.S. actively mobilizing.

Every day we learn of new cities that are organizing buses, car 
caravans, and vans. Every day, activists are calling and emailing to
let us know that they will be joining the Encampment.

Apparently, the government has also been preparing for the fall, 
preparing to silence mass resistance to the war unless we do something 
about it.  Recently the ANSWER Coalition was hit with $10,000 fines
for postering for the Sept. 15 march. And now, we learn that the Mall
is off limits.  *Make no mistake about it, the efforts on behalf of the 
government to squelch resistance to the empire are real and dangerous, 
but they will not work if we unite and fight back.*

WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT WE WILL WIN WITH YOUR SUPPORT

What you can do:

   1. Join us in a campaign to let the politicians in Washington D.C.
      know that we will not be silenced.  Please sign the petition
      online at  http://www.troopsoutnow.org/grantencampmentpermit.shtml

   2. Please call Mary A. Bomar, Director of the National Park Service
      at (202) 208-6843 and Secretary of Interior Dirk Kempthorne at
      (202) 208-6416

   3. Make a donation <http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml> to help us
      with the enormous costs of organizing for the Encampment to Stop
      the War and the March on Washington. In addition to printing
      hundreds of thousands of leaflets, organizing buses, purchasing or
      renting equipment for the Encampment, we now face the expenses of
      mounting a political and legal challenge to stop Washington's
      attempt to silence dissent. You can donate online at
      http://troopsoutnow.org/donate.shtml

With your continued help and support, we are continuing to organize and 
mobilize for the Encampment to Stop the War and the September 29 March 
on Washington. If you haven't made plans to participate, please contact 
a local organizing center at www.troopsoutnow.org/sept2907orgcents.shtml

Help us push back this attack on our right to assemble and speak out 
against the criminal occupation of Iraq.