Codepink reverses themselves, official. They had lost street cred. They must regain it by organizing large protest/camp out outside the US embassy. Simon Bolivar plaza is near the US embassy - that's the place to do it. Also -
- start working with Egyptian activists in ernest
- call for more internationals to come to Cairo. (see previous entry at http://husseini.posterous.com )
- democratize the decision making structure so it doesn't take a rebellion to do the right thing. Many US activists are now joining the French. That's good, they should join the French as a short step to doing what the French are doing at the US embassy. -Sam Husseini
http://washingtonstakeout.com Begin forwarded message: From: Rae Abileah
Date: December 30, 2009 9:45:43 AM GMT+02:00
To: gaza-freedom-march@googlegroups.com
Subject: [GFM] Update: No Token Delegation
Reply-To: codepink.rae@gmail.com Dear Gaza Freedom Marchers, The GFM steering committee spent most of the night discussing the decision to accept the Egyptian proposal for a 100-person delegation to Gaza. Some of us felt that the restrictions demanded by the Egyptians were unfair and that due process (including full consultation with partners) was not followed. We all share a similar goal, we want to break the siege of Gaza. Allowing in a delegation of one hundred people into Gaza, while excluding everyone else for no apparent reason, seemed to many a strategy to divide us. Further deliberation has led us to believe that we made a mistake; we should not have been content with so little or contribute to whitewashing the misdeeds of the Egyptian government. Already most mainstream newspapers ran articles about GFM. Our message, even from Cairo, is reaching new audiences. We are determined to continue pressuring the authorities so that we all enter Gaza as we set out to do. We apologize for the confusion and distress this may have caused. We are no longer sending a token delegation to Gaza. Let's renew the momentum we have created and show Egypt, Israel and our own governments that we will not be silent. La lutte continue! GFM Steering Committee
- start working with Egyptian activists in ernest
- call for more internationals to come to Cairo. (see previous entry at http://husseini.posterous.com )
- democratize the decision making structure so it doesn't take a rebellion to do the right thing. Many US activists are now joining the French. That's good, they should join the French as a short step to doing what the French are doing at the US embassy. -Sam Husseini
http://washingtonstakeout.com Begin forwarded message: From: Rae Abileah
Date: December 30, 2009 9:45:43 AM GMT+02:00
To: gaza-freedom-march@googlegroups.com
Subject: [GFM] Update: No Token Delegation
Reply-To: codepink.rae@gmail.com Dear Gaza Freedom Marchers, The GFM steering committee spent most of the night discussing the decision to accept the Egyptian proposal for a 100-person delegation to Gaza. Some of us felt that the restrictions demanded by the Egyptians were unfair and that due process (including full consultation with partners) was not followed. We all share a similar goal, we want to break the siege of Gaza. Allowing in a delegation of one hundred people into Gaza, while excluding everyone else for no apparent reason, seemed to many a strategy to divide us. Further deliberation has led us to believe that we made a mistake; we should not have been content with so little or contribute to whitewashing the misdeeds of the Egyptian government. Already most mainstream newspapers ran articles about GFM. Our message, even from Cairo, is reaching new audiences. We are determined to continue pressuring the authorities so that we all enter Gaza as we set out to do. We apologize for the confusion and distress this may have caused. We are no longer sending a token delegation to Gaza. Let's renew the momentum we have created and show Egypt, Israel and our own governments that we will not be silent. La lutte continue! GFM Steering Committee