NATO-Free Future & United for Peace and Justice – 2012-05-16 11:44:44

http://www.natofreefuture.org/

Register now to join us for the Counter-Summit for Peace and Economic Justice on May 18-19 in Chicago.

• April 2: 500 peace activists from 11 European countries turned out for the “NATO Game Over” action and 483 were arrested for nonviolent direct action on the NATO headquarters.

• April 9-14: 100,000 activists were trained by 99% Spring in nonviolent direct action and it’s history in social change

• April 17: 132 events in 39 countries on the Global Day of Action on Military Spending

On May 18-20 in Chicago, on the eve of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Summit, join the global grassroots peace and justice movement at the Counter-Summit for Peace and Economic Justice.

Meet the delegations from NATO countries. Hear about what Afghan organizers are doing in the US, Canada and UK to organize in the Afghan community for peace. Exchange with Afghanistan war veterans on their struggles to over come the effects of wars. Learn how peace activists in Europe are organizing to get US nuclear weapons out of bases in their countries, and why we need to work together to prevent a new US — Russian nuclear arms race

28 workshops will explore: NATO’s new role as a global military and economic alliance; organizing a grassroots movement to move the money from the Pentagon to fund jobs and human needs; preventing a war in Iran and ending the war in Afghanistan and wars for all time; campaigning to close US bases around the world; skills-building and training for organizing at the intersection of anti-militarism and economic justice and more.

Four Plenaries with speakers who will examine the interconnections among economic and racial justice, workers rights and peace, militarism at home and abroad.

Speakers include:
Sarita Gupta – Jobs with Justice,
Suraia Sahar – founding member of Afghans for Peace,
Tom Hayden- Peace and Justice Resource Center,
Tania Unzueta – Immigrant Youth Justice League,
John Nichols – The Nation,
Kathy Kelly – Voices for Creative Nonviolence,
Vijay Prashad – author of Arab Spring, Libyan Winter,
Tobias Pflüger former member of the European Parliament. And others to be confirmed

Register online.
Find housing information online as well.

Check the NATO Free Future website for new articles which explore the issues and challenges we face in working towards a NATO-free future.

On May 20 march with the Afghanistan veterans to the NATO Summit to return their medals to the NATO Generals. March with the Network for a NATO-Free Future contingent at the Iraq Veterans Against the War’s March for Justice & Reconciliation at noon on Sunday, May 20. Look for us in the southeast corner of Butler Field (Jackson and Lake Shore Drive by Petrillo Bandshell.

If you can’t make it to Chicago, watch the conference plenaries via Livestream available here: http://bit.ly/K5KMjh.

Speakers, organizers, researchers and historians are available to come to your city or town for your own local Counter-summit before the May 18-19 Counter-summit in Chicago.

Power to the Peaceful! A new global grassroots peace and justice movement is rising.