Friday, May 8, 2009

Real heroes

On May 2, Olympia Port Militarization Resistance activists were arrested attempting to halt the shipment of war machines to Afghanistan:

TACOMA, WA – Activists staged a series of successful direct actions in several locations on the night of May 2, blocking striker vehicles bound for the Port of Tacoma from Fort Lewis. Blockades halted strikers at several points along Interstate 5, and 11 activists were arrested. Demonstrators have pledged to continue resisting the use of the port for war shipments.

The Stryker vehicles were heading to the Port of Tacoma for eventual shipment to Afghanistan in advance of the deployment of the 5th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division...

At times police used excessive force against unarmed nonviolent demonstrators. One woman was choked on the strap of her messenger bag while another demonstrator was dragged across the road by his hair while he was shouting that he was nonviolent.

Port Militarization Resistance (PMR) has been actively resisting the use of the publicly owned ports in the Pacific Northwest since 2006. PMR demonstrators share a common goal to "end our community's participation in the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan by stopping the military use of our Ports." ... (link)
The Seattle Times has an article on the action here.

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