On September 4 members of the Pittsburgh Organizing Group (POG) will start a month long fast against war and military recruitment at the doors of the Armed Forces Career Center (military recruiting station) on Forbes Ave. Throughout the fast, participants and supporters will remain camped out in front of the station to put a spotlight on one of the most grotesque symbols of militarism in our community. We invite our friends and supporters to join us in our campout and, as your health situation and work schedules allow, join us for all or part of the fast.

The goal of this fast and camp-out is simple: To contribute to the movement working for the immediate withdrawal of all US troops from Iraq, and an end to military recruitment in Pittsburgh.

This September is the pivotal month for the war in Iraq—General Petraeus is scheduled to report on the progress of the occupation and politicians will be jumping on or off the war bandwagon based on the perceived political viability of the continued occupation. But even the best-case-scenario is the continuation of a geopolitical system based on money and power that never allows a truly free Iraq and coerces young people into killing and dying in wars for markets and resources.

The road ahead is a long one and the tasks ahead are daunting. Certainly, this fast and camp-out means our counter recruitment campaign is exploring a new path. While we utilize diverse tactics based on our immediate goals and the larger political dynamics, all these tactics remain part of the same movement, with the same aspirations to confront and disrupt systems of injustice. We still believe in everything we've done over the past two and a half years—from teach-ins to blockades to pickets to flyering outside high school to black blocs—as strongly now as we did then.

Fasts and long term encampments have historically been used as personal and political statements of protest and have been successfully utilized by groups seeking to raise the moral and political pressure in society necessary for specific changes in policy. In September, we will be demonstrating our outrage and sorrow through our actions as we work to create the world we want to live in. We will not only do this by fasting, but by marching, mourning and reflecting.

For peace with justice,
Through solidarity and resistance,
Pittsburgh Organizing Group

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Over the month we will be holding a series of rallies, marches, vigils, teach-ins and pickets. A full schedule of events is available online at www.organizepittsburgh.org/fast.

Ways you can participate and help:

* Join the fast!
* Camp out in solidarity for a night (or a week or the whole month)
* Donate Money—making a donation to support the End War Fast and our other anti-war work will ensure we can continue to effectively work for peace
* Come to our events—Check out our events calendar