Critical Mass Statement

Today, December 7th 2001, people in cities around the US are joining together to bike and speak out as a critical mass to demonstrate our opposition to the war, make our resistance visible, and to encourage people to think about US actions. Here in Washington, DC, in the heart of the war machine we are questioning and opposing the so called “war against terrorism.” We oppose this war because it is terrorism. We do not disagree with the need to defend oneself against oppression and attack but, rather, as anarchists, we're anti-war because war it is an instrument for extending the grip of global capitalism and the power of the State, in this case the United States. This war is terrorizing an already downtrodden people and, contrary to what the media and government say, it is not relieving them of their hardships.

In the face of government controls on free speech and civil liberties, along with a push for blind patriotism, we are uniting to oppose the US government. As we ride through the city we are taking note of the businesses, media and government housed here which create and promote war, poverty and misery abroad and here in DC. In this short bike ride we will pass the National Press Club, the White House, the FBI, Reagan International Trade Building, the Capitol, the MCI Center, government-friendly public relations firms, and defense contractors.

As we bike around the city, we are thinking about, discussing, and expressing our opposition to the corporate media which has acted as a propaganda machine for this war and as a mouth-piece for the government. In recent weeks the media has agreed to censor itself in order not to hurt US ‘security interests.’ The corporate media in the US is increasingly biased by the interests of the corporations which fund and own the media. Fortunately, a broader truth is available and by raising alternative viewpoints we hope to foster the sharing of this information.

As we bike past the corporate headquarters corporations with military contract we think about who profits from war. Many corporations have been heavily lobbying the US government for years to intervene in Afghani politics in order to allow US corporations easier access to the land and resources. Oil companies in particular have been planning a pipeline through Afghanistan, which will bring them immense profit, and in recent weeks they have come much closer to their goal.

We note the physical proximity of these corporate headquarters to government buildings. It is only too obvious that US actions in Afghanistan, and around the world, are determined by corporations. The US claims to want to help the starving people of Afghanistan, but it drops food rations into fields littered with land mines. The US claims to be concerned about womyn but it supports the Northern Alliance as the next government, a fundamentalist regime which was no friend to womyn in the early 90s and has not addressed the fact that over 90% of womyn are illiterate and suffer from psychological illness. The US claims to support democracy but the Northern Alliance is predicted to intensify ethnic and religious conflict in Afghanistan. But - the Northern Alliance will allow a pipeline though the country, and it will accept economic policy dictated by the US, and will allow the US more control of the country and the region.

Neither the Northern Alliance nor the United States has demonstrated any will to alleviate the violence, poverty, starvation, lack of education or lack of health care in Afghanistan. But, should we be surprised? Here in the US the government has done little to support the basic rights of the domestic population. As we ride through DC we take notice of local communities. Washington, DC, the capital of the richest and most powerful country in the world, is all too extreme an example of the inequalities that exist. Steps from the White House people are freezing in the streets, within blocks of the US capital families are struggling to survive and many are without adequate shelter, food and clothing. We have the highest rates of HIV per capita. Poor people, mainly people of color, are put in overflowing jails for non-violent crimes, out of sight, out of the minds of our “leaders.” But, the rich are getting richer, corporations getting more powerful, and the US government can maintain control in the Middle East. The war machine churns and makes money, global capitalism lead by the US tightens its hold and the media tells us it’s for our own good.

We are not stupid. There is a war being waged on the poor and we see it here, and we see it in other countries. We are oppressed, our labor, our energy, our minds exploited for the profit of the rich. We cannot trust our government. We cannot trust the media. We must trust ourselves. We must talk to each other. We must join together to express our dissent. We must join together to fight for our lives and know how closely our lives are linked to those of suffering people everywhere. Everywhere in the city that one turns should reflect our resistance, in our schools and work places, in our neighborhoods and on the street, every wall should reflect our resistance and our visions. We must join together to inspire, motivate, and demonstrate a movement for a world based not on profit but need; a world of mutual support; a world free from oppression.