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What may signal a new turn in the U.S. peace movement was developed at the National Peace Action Conference in Albuquerque August 5-9. Some 150 delegates charted a new course in the struggle for peace by beginning to examine in a comprehensive manner the post-Cold War policies of the U.S. government.
Under the slogan, "Beyond the Bomb - A New Agenda for Peace and Justice," policies were developed on the peace economy, nuclear abolition, weapons trafficking and human rights, lifting sanctions on Iraq, normalizing relations with Cuba and reaching out to other organizations with the aim of creating a national peace network. Post-Yugoslav war U.S. policies were critically examined. It was concluded that as a result of the unilateral action by the U.S. in Yugoslavia, all international relations are becoming suspect as to their legality because the U.S. is rewriting them according to the medieval concept that "might makes right."
The convention heard from Patricia Gonzalez and Roberto Rodriguez, syndicated New Mexican journalists, speaking on the Chicano experience. Also present were Pueblo leaders Lila Bird - Cochiti Pueblo; Ana Rondon-Manuelito - Dine (Navajo Nation); Dorothy Purley - Laguna Pueblo; Cathy Sanchez - San Ildefonso Pueblo; Joe Gutierrez - Homesteaders of the Pajarito Plateau; and Damacio Lopez - Revisioning New Mexico.
Phyllis Bennis gave one of the keynote addresses. A fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies and connected to the U.N. Non-Government Organizations, her work has been mainly to research the covert activities of U.S. foreign policy. In great detail she analyzed the political actions of the United States before and after the Yugoslav war. She cited the arrogance of both Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former U.N. Representative Bill Richardson in indicating that the United States is not obligated to observe any pact other than one that serves U.S. corporate interests. Time and time again, she exposed contradictions between the written word and U.S. actions with the response of these individuals of, "So what?"
Her conclusion - that with the demise of the socialist system, a new relationship of forces now exists in the world - one that is ruled by the multinational corporations. As a means of resistance, she suggested (and it was later adopted) that we work to support the United Nations and international agreements.
Patricia Gonzalez and Roberto Rodriguez presented unique aspects of New Mexican history, such as the Spanish conquest, the Pueblo Revolt of 1680 and the fact that throughout the state there are a great number of people who believe in Liberation Theology.
Pueblo speakers spoke of the resistance experiences of the Indian Pueblos from the very beginning of the Manhattan (atomic bomb) Project to the present time. Lila Bird indicated that from the very beginning, the Native Americans were concerned about the poisoning of their land.
This was further repeated by Anna Manuelito and Dorothy Purley, when they spoke about the Native Americans being employed in uranium mining and not being informed of the health dangers. Cathy Sanchez represented the TEWA Women United, a Pueblo health and environment watch group. Joe Gutierrez, a successful whistle blower about Los Alamos National Lab health conditions, described how lands were taken away from Native Americans to make room for the building of the Laboratory.
International guests gave the conference a sense of the strength of the world peace movement in opposing U.S. imperialist policies. The guests were from France, Canada, Japan, Australia, Pakistan, India, Scotland and Belau.
The conference, representing over 23,000 national members, was well organized and rich in content.
However, the one thing that was missing was the question of jobs. Nowhere did the delegates discuss the reason that New Mexicans are not massively resisting the poisoning of their state, of a worker trading off his or her health in order to put food on the table. Alternatives such as the Martinez Public works Jobs Bill or labs converting to peacetime projects were not even on the agenda.