Dissident Veteran For Peace: Sami Al-Arian Hunger Strike Update

Dissident Veteran For Peace

"I know of no country in which there is so little independence of mind and real freedom of discussion as in America." —Alexis de Tocquevile. Democracy in America, Book I, Chapter XV.

With a nod to the Most Rev. Dom Helder Camara: When I support Palestinians some call me an 'anti-Semite', when I try to explain why I stand in solidarity with Palestinians they call me a Nazi.

"WAR is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives." —Major General Smedley Butler, USMC (ret.)

"... no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end." —character of O'Brien in 1984, part 3, ch. 3 by George Orwell.

"Every prophet has realized that nobody loves you for being the enemy of their illusions. Every prophet has realized that most of us want peace at any price as long as the peace is ours and somebody else pays the price. That is why the prophet Jeremiah said, ' "Peace, peace," they say, when there is no peace,' ..." —The Rev. William Sloane Coffin. "Not to Bring Peace, But a Sword."

Monday, February 19, 2007

Sami Al-Arian Hunger Strike Update

Dr. Sami Al-Arian--a US political prisoner for 1,460 days--has now been on a hunger strike for 29 days, he has lost 32 pounds, and was recently transferred to a prison medical facility. Al-Arian is protesting his imprisonment on contempt charges stemming from his refusal of the government's demand that he testify before a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Va.

The Tampa, FL-based Friends of Human Rights is calling for a "rolling hunger strike" in solidarity with Al-Arian. Those who would like to join are asked to please send an e-mail to tampabayjustice@yahoo.com with the day they will fast. I'll be fasting on February 22nd as Al-Arian's fast enters its second month.

Also, keep an eye out for, or better yet arrange a showing of, the new Norwegian documentary film, USA vs Al-Arian.

Labels: Al-Arian, political prisoners