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Say no to Bush's war on Iraq January 10, 2003 | Page 2 STOP THESE racist detentions! That's the demand of antiwar activists organizing actions across the country against the federal government's roundup of hundreds of Arab and Muslim men and boys in Southern California. Hundreds of people voluntarily reported to Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) offices to comply with a post-September 11 rule requiring men aged 16 years and older from targeted countries, such as Iran, Iraq and Pakistan, to register. A quarter of them were detained. Following on the heels of a thousands-strong protest in December in Los Angeles, a multiracial crowd of 150 gathered to speak out against the detentions in front of the INS offices. Protesters highlighted the racism faced by immigrants as a result of the "war on terrorism." In New York City, a coalition representing more than 30 groups came together on New Year's Eve to form the Emergency Coalition to Stop Special Registrations. A December 27 picket of INS headquarters drew 100 people, and the coalition has planned a demonstration for 2 p.m. on January 10 at the INS offices at 26 Federal Plaza. Labor against the war Union activists in Chicago are voicing their opposition to the Iraq war with a forum on January 10 titled "Labor Voices and Veterans Against War." The event will feature Bill Davis, former national coordinator of Vietnam Veterans Against the War and now a chief shop steward at UPS; Dan Lane, a Vietnam War veteran and leading activist in the Staley lockout of the mid-1990s; plus representatives from New York City Labor Against the War and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Meanwhile, activists are gearing up for the national protests on January 18. In New York, the Campus Anti-War Network has already filled two buses. In Chicago, activists leafleted the overflow crowd of 750 who turned out to hear Palestinian activist Rashid Khalidi and Nation columnist Katha Pollitt trounce war hawks Peter Berkowitz from The New Republic and Raymond Tanter. Joe Cleffie, William Figueroa and Jen Roesch contributed to this report.
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