BOOKS NOT BOMBS! - National Student Strike - March 5th, 2003

WEBSITE: http://www.nyspc.net

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Worldwide Demonstrations Build Momentum for National Student Strike

Over 300 Campuses to Walkout for 'Books Not Bombs'



The National Student Strike for Books Not Bombs, will take place March 5th on campuses across the US and the world.  The strike is building a wave of campus sentiment against the Bush Administration’s war plans in Iraq.  The event was originally called for and is being coordinated by the National Youth and Student Peace Coalition (NYSPC), a collection of 15 student and youth organizations whose members organizations represent large and diverse constituencies stretching across the US.

Thousands of students on over 300 campuses have pledged their support for this day of national student resistance. 



On March 5th, high school and college students will demonstrate their collective opposition to the Bush Administration's plans for a pre-emptive, unilateral war in Iraq and call for better-funded and more accessible schools.  Students are also demanding that their campuses serve education instead of war by removing ROTC and JROTC and replacing them with financial aid and college preparatory programs.  They call for local administrative non-compliance with and the federal repeal of the provision of the "No Child Behind Act" which forces high schools to give their students names over to military recruiters or lose federal funds.

"We demand that Bush bring our troops home now.  We don't want to see our friends die in a needless war," said Amanda Flott, a junior at the University of Kansas.

Many students say that the latest round of tuition hikes and aid cuts across the country are a "war tax" on the poor.  "Working class youth will have to fight and die while students at home are seeing their education undermined," said Ben Waxman, a Philadelphia area high school student.  "I want to go to college, not fight for global US domination."

On Feb. 15th, the world experienced the largest outpouring of support for peace since the Vietnam era as an estimated 6 million people worldwide attended protests in over 500 cities.  "Now the campuses are doing our part to stand up for a better tomorrow," said Amanda Crater, a junior at UC-Berkeley.  The worldwide peace demonstrations have significantly increased awareness of and participation in the strike.

Since the initial call to action was circulated by the NYSPC, students across the world have joined on to the Books Not Bombs strike campaign.  In Austraila, Spain, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Brazil, and Scotland students will be striking in solidarity with the US students.  Sarah Ahmed of the Muslim Students Association said, "its the people on the streets and on the campuses across the globe who are giving UN diplomats their credibility to resist this war."

As a prepatory event, students will hold local press conferences early next week to announce their strikes and walkouts.  An as-accurate-as-possible list of high schools and colleges participating in the strike will be posted at no later than Wednesday evening, Feb. 26.  See for more details including a press kit and weblinks to NYSPC member organizations.

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BOOKS NOT BOMBS! - National Student Strike - March 5th, 2003

 

LIST OF PARTICIPATING CAMPUSES

(Organized by state)

THIS LIST WILL BE MUCH LARGER SOON!

This list is a partial list of confirmed campuses as of 2/27/03.  We 

have a large backlog to post and are constantly receiving new additions 

so keep checking for more. We will update as we are able.

To obtain contacts at individual campuses, or to make 

corrections/additions to this list, contact clearinghouse@tao.ca



Campus Organization(s) City State/Province Country

Hendrix College STARC-180/MDE Conway AR USA

University of Arkansas Progressive Student Association  Fayetteville AR USA

University of Central Arkansas   Conway AR USA

Chico State   Chico CA USA

Claremont Colleges Claremont Colleges Peace Coalition Pomona CA USA

De Anza College Women's Solidarity Movement Cupertino CA USA

Los Gatos High School    Los Gatos CA USA

San Francisco State University   San Francisco CA USA

Sierra College Associated Students of Sierra College, Sierra Students for CHANGE Grass Valley CA USA

Torrey Pines High School SPAN   CA USA

UC Berkeley Berkeley Stop the War Coalition Berkeley CA USA

Colorado University   Boulder CO USA

Glastonbury High School   Glastonbury CT USA

Wesleyan   Middleton CT USA

Howard University Amnesty Int'l Washington DC USA

University of Florida, Gainesville Global Realms, Oxfam, United Students for Fair Trade Gainesville FL USA

Iowa State University   Ames IA USA

University of Iowa   Iowa City IA USA

Moscow High School   Moscow ID USA

Chicago High Schools UC Anti-War Chicago IL USA

University of Chicago   Chicago IL USA

Whitney Young High School    Chicago IL USA

Avon High School   Avon IN USA

Indiana University   Bloomington IN USA

Hampshire College     MA USA

Harvard University   Cambridge MA USA

Mount Holyoke College   S. Hadley MA USA

Salem State College   Salem MA USA

Westford Academy   Westford MA USA

University of Maryland at College Park   College Park MD USA

University of Michigan Anti-war Action Ann Arbor MI USA

UM-Kansas City Muslim Students Association, Campus Greens Kansas City MOI USA

Hellgate High School   Missoula MT USA

Duke University   Chapel Hill NC USA

Keene State College Students For Global Justice Keene NH USA

Bergen Co. High Schools Bergen Action Network Englewood Area NJ USA

Drew University Drew University Coalition for Peace, NJ Peace Action  Madison NJ USA

Rutgers   New Brunswick NJ USA

Galena High School   Reno NV USA

Reed High   Reno NV USA

Sparks High School   Sparks NV USA

Truckee Meadows Community College   Reno NV USA

University of Nevada at Las Vegas   Las Vegas NV USA

University of Nevada, Reno Reno Anti-War Coalition Reno NV USA

Hunter College   New York NY USA

Cornell   Ithaca NY USA

Ithaca High School Peaceful Solutions Club Ithaca NY USA

Marymount Manhattan College   New York NY USA

New School University   New York NY USA

New York University NYU Peace Coalition New York NY USA

Queens College   New York NY USA

Smithtown High School   St. James NY USA

SUNY Albany   Albany NY USA

SUNY Fredonia Fredonia Students for Peace Fredonia NY USA

SUNY-Buffalo   Buffalo NY USA

Miami University of Ohio MU Students for Peace Oxford OH USA

Ohio University   Athens OH USA

Oregon State University Wrench Corvallis OR USA

University of Oregon   Eugene OR USA

Harrisburg Area Community College   Harrisburg PA USA

University of Pennsylvania Penn for Peace and Penn Students Against War in Iraq Philadelphia PA USA

Middle Tennessee State University MT Solidarity Murfeesboro TN USA

University of Tennessee   Knoxville TN USA

Mayde Creek High School   Houston TX USA

University of North Texas Anti-War Operations League Denton TX USA

UT-Austin Campus Coalition for Peace and Justice Austin TX USA

Castleton State College   Castleton VT USA

Johnson State College VSC Network Johnson VT USA

Evergreen State College   Olympia WA USA

Whitman College J.U.S.T.I.C.E. Walla Walla WA USA

University of Wisconsin - Green Bay Campus Greens Green Bay WI USA

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Greens, Diversity Coalition La Crosse WI USA

University of Wisconsin -  Oshkosh Campus Greens & Student Environmental Peace Coalition Oshkosh WI USA

University of Wisconsin - Madison Multicultural Students Coalition Madison WI USA

University of Wisconsin - Whitewater Campus Greens Whitewater WI USA

University of Utah     UT USA

Asheville High School    Asheville   USA

El Camino College       USA

Everett Alvarez High School       USA

Indian Hills Junior High School       USA

Montclair State-Ramopo       USA

Roosevelt High School       USA

Valley High School       USA

 

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http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/01/national/01STUD.html?ex=1047099600&en=c2f78a206ef08396&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE

The New York Times

March 1, 2003

Student Groups Plan Walkout to Protest War

By TAMAR LEWIN

Students at hundreds of high schools and colleges nationwide are planning a walkout on Wednesday to protest the Bush administration's plans for war in Iraq.

The student strike is being coordinated by the National Youth and Student Peace Coalition, an organization of 15 student groups that came together after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The coalition, which calls the action "Books not Bombs," has linked student protests against war in Iraq with a call for better-financed schools.

"We're getting about 10 schools a day contacting us to participate, and it's probably about 35-40 percent high schools," said Andy Burns, an organizer who is signing up schools from his office in Little Rock, Ark.

Mr. Burns said he expected about 300 colleges and high schools to participate in the walkout.

Many of the students organizing next week's action have portrayed the latest round of tuition increases at state colleges and universities as a "war tax" on the poor.

"We're walking out of our classes because it's completely ridiculous that students in Iraq, who are exactly the same as us, will have to face the consequences of a unilateral war," said Amanda Flott, a University of Kansas student who is a spokeswoman for the coalition. "Also, at a time when many students are already priced out of higher education, the increase in funding for the military will decrease the money available for education, all to support a war that in my mind is not justifiable."

From Chico State University in California to Castleton State College in Vermont, students are planning a variety of events for the walkout, including antiwar rallies and a mock election, with ballots to be sent to Congress on which protesters can cast votes against the war and for education.

The coalition said that student groups in Australia, Spain, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Brazil and Scotland were organizing strikes in solidarity with the American students.

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