Vigil to Close the SOA/ WHINSEC
November 17-19, 2006
Together We'll Shut it Down!
This November 17-19, thousands will gather at the gates of Fort Benning, Georgia for the Vigil to Close the School of the Americas! Following on the heels of our first vote in Congress in seven years, this year's Vigil is shaping up to be a powerful time for movement building and an effective tool in the campaign to close the SOA/ WHINSEC.
2006 Schedule of Events
Read about past Vigils to Close the School of the Americas.
NOVEMBER ORGANIZING PACKET: The November Organizing Packet is a great resource for you and your community as you spread the word about the SOA/ WHINSEC and as you make plans to attend the November 17-19 Vigil to Close the SOA at Fort Benning, Georgia. In it, you'll find information about what to expect at Ft. Benning, logistical information to assist your trip planning, media, legislative, fundraising and outreach tips and resources, and flyers you can reproduce and use in your community. Click here to view or download a hard copy of the packet.
OUTREACH: You can make a big difference by using a few simple resources at your disposal and reaching out to your local media. Taking a little time to carry out a handful of media-related tasks can profoundly impact the number of people in your area who know about the SOA/WHINSEC issue and the number of people who get involved in the work to CLOSE IT DOWN. Read about how you can Work With Your Local Media! or contact us in the SOA Watch office at 202-234-3440 or email media(at)soaw.org
Dear Editor:
[Intro sentence connecting your letter to a recent article, if applicable]. This weekend, November 17-19, I will join thousands in Columbus, Georgia to call for the closure of thecontroversial School of the Americas, renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (SOA/ WHINSEC). Graduates of this U.S.-taxpayer-financed institution, a combat training school for Latin American security personnel, continue to be implicated in civilian-targeted killings throughout Latin America.
The SOA/ WHINSEC, a combat training facility for Latin American security personnel located at Fort Benning, Georgia, made headlines in 1996 when the Pentagon released training manuals used at the school that advocated torture, extortion and execution. Despite this shocking admission and hundreds of documented human rights abuses connected to soldiers trained at the school, no independent investigation into the training facility has ever taken place.
For hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans, this school is a symbol of torture and failed U.S foreign policy. It is out of line with the values of everyday Americans, and closing it for good would send a strong human rights record to Latin America and the world.
A growing movement of human rights groups, religious clergy and laypeople, students, veterans, unionists and many others will converge in Georgia this weekend, including a contingent from [your town]. We will demand that this training camp be shut down. The path to lasting peace and security can only be found if we implement foreign policy that reflects our ideals of justice and democracy.
To learn more about the SOA/WHINSEC and efforts to close it, visit www.SOAW.org or call 202-234-3440.
Sincerely,
[your name, address and contact info]
http://www.soaw.org/new/article.php?id=1295
letters@washpost.com
KOlbermann@msnbc.com
