While we denounce the horrible and criminal killing of tens of thousands of Japanese civilians 61 years ago, we must also condemn the current slaughter of Iraqi men, women, and children as we use every nonviolent means possible to end the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq. Unless we achieve this peace goal, the number of civilian victims of U.S. aggression in Iraq could exceed the number of civilians incinerated at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Moreover, strong and decisive resistance is especially urgent in view of the Bush administration's consideration of a possible "first strike" which would rain nuclear bombs on Iran or other countries. We must utter a loud and powerful "No!" to genocide yesterday in Japan, today in Iraq, and tomorrow in Iran, Venezuela, or any other country which the U.S. may target in its quest to reduce the entire globe to a "free trade area" unprotected from corporate profiteering.

Our Global Call Iraq Campaign, looking toward August 6-9, the 61st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, is helping local groups around the world to organize nonviolent action around the theme “End the Slaughter of the Innocents: End the Iraq Occupation!” We hope you and your local organizing groups will be able to join us in organizing actions that focus on the hypocrisy of U.S. threats against Iran as well as the role of transnational corporations in fomenting a nuclear crisis and leading the “coalition of the willing” to war in Iraq.

One important target for these actions in the United States will be Bechtel's corporate offices and nuclear facilities, as Bechtel is both the world's #1 nuclear profiteer and a leading beneficiary of the Iraq war and corporate globalization. Other possible places for nonviolent resistance actions would be nuclear test sites and storage facilities, military bases, federal buildings, and (around the world) U.S. embassies, consulates, and military bases.

Please let us know if we can be of assistance to your local group as you begin to organize and plan actions for August 6-9. We will be posting all available GCI campaign promotional materials as pdf files to www.GlobalCallIraq.org <http://www.globalcalliraq.org/> shortly. Please let us know if we can send you any of these materials by mail to help with your local organizing efforts. Also, GCI is currently helping to organize the “2006 Nonviolent Direct Action Training Initiative” along with the Declaration of Peace (www.declarationofpeace.org). The training initiative seeks to develop a national network of nonviolence trainers in order to promote and support nonviolence trainings and related events throughout the remainder of this year. Contact us if you would like to find out more information about the 2006 Nonviolent Direct Action Training Inititiative.

We look forward to hearing back from you regarding ongoing organizing for August 6-9. If possible, please post information about your action to www.globalcalliraq.org or send the information to info-AT-globalcalliraq.org and we can post it for you. As pressure continues to mount to end the Iraq occupation, it is increasingly important that global nonviolent resistance intensifies and grows as well. We look forward to your continued collaboration and commitment.

In Solidarity,

The Global Call Iraq Coordinating Committee
Patty Adams, Jerimarie Liesegang, Danny Malec, Joe Mulligan, SJ, and Mary Novak
www.GlobalCallIraq.org www.globalcalliraq.org/