See the George Galloway Tour's Blog for updates on each stop - Boston, New
York, Toronto, Madison, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and
Washington, DC at http://www.traprockpeace.org/george_galloway_tour/
or http://www.isreview.org/gallowaytour.shtml
Todd Chretien
Galloway Does Boston Proud.
We who live in the United States or Britain, only have to answer one
question, do we stand with the occupier, or with those who are resisting
colonial occupation.
The swamp of hatred that our policies have created in the Muslim world
nourish the mutation of hatred that believes killing innocent people in New
York or London is somehow a blow against those responsible in our countries
for those policies. All we have done be invading and occupying Iraq is
increase the number of people who hate us and the intensity with which they
hate us.
The US and Britain¹s unquestioning support for the State of Israel is the
flaw that lies at the heart of the West¹s attitude toward the Muslim world.
Standing ovation from 400 people.
George Galloway did historic Faneuil Hall proud last night. Despite a
complete boycott by the mainstream media, the boisterous crowd cheered the
MP who took a stand against the hawks in the Senate. They rose to their
feet and pledged to work for the next two weeks to mobilize for the
September 24 national anti-war protest in Washington, D.C. to show Bush that
his is in an ever-shrinking minority of American opinion that believes the
war is just.
In a small gesture of respect that very few people could see because of the
position of the stage, he touched his fingers to his lips and gently laid a
kiss on the bust of Fredrick Douglass that adorns the stage. Galloway then
strode to the podium and announced that he stands proudly in the tradition
of an English MP named Fox who was twice expelled from parliament: the
first time for supporting the American Revolution; the second time for
submitting a resolution (³perhaps it was a bit provocatively phrased²)
congratulating the French people on the separation of their king from his
crowned head.
Before Mr. Galloway mounted the platform, meeting chair Annie Zirin kicked
off the night saying, ³we need to make a change to a system that can put
250,000 troops in the Middle East, but cannot evacuate the sick, the elderly
and the poor from New Orleans.² She then introduced Eriko Nagai from the
Northeastern University chapter of the Campus Anti-War Network who announced
that CAN was sending a bus with volunteers, supplies and money to New
Orleans and asked the crowed to contribute.
Boston City Councilman Chuck Turner called on the crowd to speak and act in
order to challenge the sick priorities of the system that found money for
war but not education. Prof. William Keach, spoke powerfully to need to
challenge not only the war criminals in the Oval Office, but the pro-war
Democrats who made the invasion possible. Prof. Naseer Aruri, speaking on
behalf of the National Council of Arab Americans said that it was not only
the duty of the brave parents like Cindy Sheehan who have lost children in
the war to stand up, but that it was every person in America¹s duty to
challenge the dangerous and racist policies guiding its actions today.
Boston was a great first step. Tonight, Galloway takes on ex-leftists,
turned character assassin and professional hatchet man Christopher Hitchens
in the Baruch Performing Arts Center here in New York City. The grapple in
the apple will be a thing to watch and you can!
You may hear or see the debate live at http://www.democracynow.org via
webstream.
Or you may see it re-broadcast on Cspan at
http://209.144.51.202/feature/index.asp?segID=6145&schedID=377
Watch the Baruch Assault on Hitchens and then get your ticket for a Galloway
tour stop near you at http://www.MrGallowayGoesToWashington.com
###
Todd Chretien is the Galloway National Tour Coordinator and a frequent
contributor to the <a href=" http://www.isreview.org "
target="_blank">International Socialist Review.</a>
See a photo from the Boston event at http://www.traprockpeace.org
