Win Without War - A mainstream voice advocating alternatives to preemptive war against Iraq

Press Release

MEDIA ADVISORY FOR Sunday, March 16, 2003

CONTACT: Kalee Kreider or Brendan McCarthy, Fenton Communications, (202) 822-5200

Wave of Vigils Opposing U.S. Invasion Of Iraq Sweeps World

6,357 Cities in 136 Countries Involved

Peter, Paul & Mary Headline Lincoln Memorial Antiwar Vigil

www.globalvigil.org Web site will have current numbers

On the day President Bush conferred with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and their small circle of allies, thousands of Washington area residents attended a candlelight vigil this evening at the Lincoln Memorial and half a dozen other local sites to protest a U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Thousands of individuals and dozens of organizations around the country have responded to a call by Win Without War, the nation’s mainstream anti Iraq war coalition, and its million-member affiliate MoveOn.org, to join with citizens of 136 countries in more than 6,000 cities around the world, where similar vigils were held.

“While inspections are neutralizing Saddam Hussein’s threat to America, the Administration has us on a collision course that severs our links with allies we need to fight terrorism and fuels Al Qaeda recruitment. It will also pile costs on American taxpayers just as budget deficits are forcing cuts in education and homeland security,” said former Congressman Tom Andrews, national director of Win Without War.

“World public opinion is clear: no US invasion and occupation of Iraq without UN approval. A US war threatens the lives of thousands of Iraqi civilians in a country where half the people are under the age of fifteen. With tough inspections, we can disarm Saddam without the loss of a single life,” said Eli Pariser, international campaigns director of MoveOn.org.

Many faith-based organizations in the U.S. and abroad have responded with an unprecedented set of protest vigils set to begin in New Zealand on Sunday night and to continue sequentially in time zones all over the world.

Members of Win Without War include: National Council of Churches, MoveOn.org, Sierra Club, NAACP, National Organization of Women, American Friends Service Committee, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Working Assets, Veterans for Common Sense, Greenpeace, Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, Women's Action for New Directions, Unitarian-Universalist Association of Congregations, United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society, Council for a Livable World, TrueMajority, Conference of Major Superiors of Men, Leadership Conference, Global Exchange, NETWORK - A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby, Oxfam America, Rainbow/Push Coalition, Sojourners, Tikkun Community, Peace Action, Artists United to Win Without War, Musicians United to Win Without War, Us Foundation.

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