Statement by Lawrence Hamm, Chairman, People’s Organization For Progress.
The People’s Organization For Progress is unequivocally opposed to the U.S. war against Iran. This war is one of the most stupid, dangerous, and tragic actions taken by the Trump administration so far, and should immediately be brought to an end.
Not one more person should die in this war. Turn the ships around and bring our troops home now.
We are opposed to this war as are the majority of Americans. We don’t want another war for oil. We don’t want another regime change war. We don’t want another forever war like Iraq, Afghanistan, and Vietnam. We want peace.
It is an illegal war since it is not a war declared by Congress. According to the Constitution it is Congress, not the President, who has the power to declare war.
This is a war of imperialist aggression. Iran did not attack the United States and posed no threat to this country. The U.S. attacked Iran first. In this conflict it is our country that is the aggressor.
Dr Martin Luther King when discussing the Vietnam War said the greatest purveyor of violence in the world was the U.S. government. That was true then and it is true today.
The U.S. is the purveyor of state terror. The Trump administration acts like a mafia state with little regard for domestic and international law. He kidnaps Venezuela’s president and holds him for ransom, for a cut of the oil business.
He kills the president of Iran, knock him off to get him out of the way. He strangles countries like Cuba with economic sanctions, so he can take over their territory.
This war is totally unnecessary and in part is one of Trump’s own making. It has already caused the needless loss of not only American and Iranian lives but also the lives of people in other countries in the region.
POP opposes the war with Iran because it is paid for with funds that could have been used for our domestic needs, such as health care, education, jobs, and housing. It is not only paid for in tax dollars it is paid for with lives.
Rich people benefit from these wars but their children don’t fight in them. Barron Trump will not be fighting in Iran. It is the sons and daughters of the working class, poor folk, black people, Latinos, and other minorities who make up the majority of those who will fight and die in Iran and other wars for empire.
Trump’s recent attack on Iran began a few days ago but it has already become a regional conflagration. In a region already roiling from Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians, and Trump’s attack on Iran last year, the U.S. and Israel decided to strike Iran again.
In retaliation Iran has struck back at U.S. forces and also bombed Israel, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria. This conflict has the potential of escalating further and dragging us into a world war.
Despite Trump’s pronouncements, he bears responsibility for bringing the U.S. into this conflict. He says this is about nuclear weapons. However, he withdrew the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal that was in place that kept Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
However, most people know this war is not about nuclear weapons. Iran is one of the major producers of oil. This is yet another war for oil. This is a war about U.S. dominance and empire.
Iran is the biggest obstacle to Israel’s hegemony in the region. Israel has been urging the U.S. to go to war with Iran for decades. This war is about Israel’s hegemony in the region and the establishment of Netanyahu’s goal of a “greater Israel,” which he announced at the United Nations.
Many understand that this war is about distraction. This is a war to draw our attention away from the Epstein files, which is shaping up to be perhaps one of the biggest scandals in American history. A scandal which many believe could implicate President Trump and several of his cabinet members in various types of criminal activity.
The People’s Organization For Progress urges people to take every action necessary to bring this unjust war with Iran to an end. People should utilize every tool available to express their opposition to this war. In the fight for peace there is something everyone can do.
We should take to the streets and protest now, and keep the protests up until the war in Iran ends. Demonstrations took place this weekend in cities and towns across the country.
There will be another massive wave of No Kings protests across the U.S. on Saturday, March 28th. A No Kings protests is scheduled for that day beginning 12:00 noon at the Lincoln Statue, 12 Springfield Avenue in Newark, NJ.
People should participate in these protests and use them as an opportunity to demonstrate opposition to Trump administration’s foreign policy toward Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, Congo, Sudan, South Africa, and other countries.
We should engage in economic initiatives such as boycotts, divestment, and sanctions. We should boycott and divest from companies whose products and services are used to support these unjust wars.
We should pressure our elected officials to take a stand against the war and pass legislation to bring it to an end. We should write, call, text, email, and meet with our congressional representatives and let them know about our opposition to the war.
POP calls on all congressional representatives to vote in favor of the war powers resolutions sponsored by U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rep Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA).
These bills require the removal of U.S. Armed Forces from the conflict in Iran and that future military action against Iran must be authorized by Congress.
We must use our votes for peace. We should vote for anti-war candidates and vote against those that are pro-war.
As we fight to end the war in Iran let us also work to change our political-economic system, an imperialist system, that profits from and drives us to war. These wars are not only policy choices they are systemic in nature.
