Now's the time, New England! SUPPORT the "Come Clean on Drone Killings" Act (Schiff/Jones HR 4372: the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act)

Support for the "Come Clean on Drone Killings" bill is growing! There are now 9 co-sponsors, in addition to the original 2 sponsors -- and two of those co-sponsors are from New England:
Rep. Peter Welch [D-VT-At Large] and Rep. James P. McGovern [D-MA-2].

But people in New England could be doing much more . . . .

People nationwide who have been protesting drones are contacting their representatives to encourage support for H.R.4372: the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act. If passed, the bill will require the Obama administration to come clean about the killings it has carried out using drones -- killings that, up until now, the administration has been able to pretend don't exist.

There's an especially strong expectation that members of the Progressive Caucus will co-sponsor the bill. (The bill was launched immediately after a letter from Progressive Caucus leaders criticized the Obama administration on drones.) Progressive Caucus members from New England -- in addition to those who are already co-sponsors -- are:

CT03 - Rosa DeLauro

MA04 - Joseph Kennedy

MA07 - Michael Capuano

ME01 - Chellie Pingree

RI01 - David Cicilline

So now's the time: write or call your member of Congress today. 

To determine what district you live in, go to http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/

To see an example of a constituent letter, see An Open Letter to Congressman Mike Quigley on H.R.4372: the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act 

[SEE: hub page for all Resources to SUPPORT the "Come Clean on Drone Killings" Act (Schiff/Jones HR 4372: the Targeted Lethal Force Transparency Act)]


Related posts

First Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) and Keith Ellison (D-MN) called the U.S. on the carpet for dodging the call from the international community to come clean about its drone killings. Then Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Walter Jones (R-NC) submitted a bill calling for drone transparency. So ... are we finally going to get the truth?

(See REAL Progressives Demand that the U.S. Come Clean on Drone Killings)

A 2013 U.N. report makes it clear that the U.S. has to report fully on all its drone attacks.

(See 2014: The Year of Transparency (for U.S. Drone Use)?)

The reason the Administration is hiding truth about drones is that they don't have a satisfactory answer for how decisions about drone strikes are made.  As we have known all along, we need the public to think about how crummy the whole drone program is, and then they will be ready to be on our side. The best way to get them really thinking is to shine a spotlight on the secrecy, evasiveness, and deceit involved in the U.S. drone program.

(See Drone Killings: Come Clean )

MIT: The Pentagon on the Charles

In an action organized by the Eastern Massaschusetts  Anti- Drone Network, representatives from Veterans for Peace, the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) and other groups came to MIT on Tuesday, 5/6 to call attention to the university's complicity with lethal applications of drone technology in a demonstration themed "The Pentagon on the Charles." A full report can be heard here.

A 1/5 scale Reaper Drone replica helped to counteract the
 dissociation between the research laboratory and the realities
 resulting from that research.

Professor Subrata Ghoshroy, a research affiliate with MIT's Science, Technology, and Society program, in discussing the day's theme, hearkened back to the close ties between MIT and the Pentagon during the Vietnam War era and asked pointed questions about why the genius of an institution like MIT is still being directed to the development of weapons, especially in light of the immense environmental and infrastructure challenges faced by our nation.

Prof. Subrata Ghoshroy discusses MIT's complicity
 in drone terror.  The full video is linked here.

Nancy Murray (pictured L) discussed the "fairy tales" propagated
 by the Obama administration in the place of true transparency
 regarding the innocent people murdered by drone strikes. 

An MIT alumna who passed by the protest said: "If I had known I would be there with them...to me the whole drone story is so cruel...from what I've heard they're actually fueling hate instead of [protecting us]...it's revolting to me that anyone could accept to do that, just kill people from a room somewhere as if they're nonhuman."

Demonstrators also took the time to read the names of the many people killed around the world by U.S. drone strikes, many children and many if not most completely innocent of wrongdoing.

Bearing witness to those slaughtered by U.S. drone.

"U.S.A is the Real Terrorist."

The large group gathered on the campus caught
 the attention of many passersby.

The Spring Days of Drone Action
 continue nationwide! CLICK HERE
 for more information.

Boston, Maine, NH events during April Days of Action Against Drones

Events throughout New England will be part of the April Days of Action Against Drones.

MAINE

Bruce Gagnon, Coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, is working with the American Civil Liberties Union on legislation that would limit drone surveillance in the state of Maine. Hearings are expected to be held in the first half of April. For more info: globalnet@mindspring.com


 MASSACHUSETTS

BOSTON - Saturday, April 6, 2013 - Drone Death March: Members of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and others held their monthly death walk. See a full album of photos from the Boston action!

Saturday, April 13, 2013 - E. Mass. Anti-Drone March/rally/die-in: The Eastern Mass. No Drones Network calls for all to join us at Park St. downtown Boston for a rally, a march through downtown and a die-in on Saturday, April 13, at 1:00 PM. See photos and video from the event here!

Westborough - Wednesday, April 10, 2013 - Ground the Drones: A talk by Lois Mastrangelo and Paki Wieland who have recently visited Pakistan on an investigative trip regarding drones with Code Pink It will be held at the Westborough Public Library, 55 West Main St., 7:00 p.m.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

MERRIMACK - Friday, April 5, 2013 - Vigil to Protest Drone Attacks Against Civilians: Members of NH Palestinian Network and NH Veterans for Peace sponsored a vigil/protest in front of Elbit Systems, 220 Daniel Webster Highway, Merrimack, NH, on April 5, 2013, from 11:30 am until 1:30 pm. Elbit is an Israeli-owned weapons manufacturer and some of its drones were used to kill and maim hundreds of innocent civilians in Gaza between 2008-09 and in 2012. Their goal was to bring attention to this company which profits off war. Elbit also produces, in Merrimack, the electronic systems used in the Apartheid Walls in Occupied Palestine and also the separation barrier between Mexico and the US.


(Add additional events to the master list of national April Days of Action actions.)

Drones: what are YOU prepared to do?

Become part of the national No Drones movement!

Read about ALL the ways YOU can be involved 

in the April Days of Action Against Drones!

April Days of Action Against Drones: Boston Common again hosts large anti-drone action

For the second week in a row, Boston Common was a flashpoint for the nationwide April Days of Action Against Drones. 

The Common filled with protestors and newsmedia, as speakers

 discussed the traumatic effects of killing on drone "pilots," the

 excess of military budgets, and the potential for drones to be used

 on American soil. 

A discussion of the evisceration of our social services foregrounds
 a tribute to innocent victims of drone warfare.

"It's up to us to speak out!"

The Common filled with groans of pain in a disturbing simulation
 of the aftermath of a drone strike too close to home.

Demonstrators made sure that Bostonians heard their voices as they
 took to the streets, flanked by police officers.

Check out more photos here

 and see the full videos below:

Drone protest and die-in, Boston, MA, April 13, 2013

Drone protest (2) with march, Boston, MA, April 13, 2013

In addition to being a part of the April Days of Action Against Drones, the demonstration also coincided with protests in Washington D.C. and at the C.I.A. headquarters in northern Virginia.

GET INVOLVED IN YOUR STATE! CLICK HERE FOR EVENTS NATIONWIDE!

April Days of Action Against Drones in Boston: Saturday, April 6th

Boston area anti-war activists held a protest against US unmanned drone warfare last Saturday at the Boston Common. This was the first Boston demonstration of the National April Days of Action Against Drones, joining events on Saturday in San Diego, Chicago, and in many other cities nationwide. The Boston protest was organized by The Committee For Peace and Human Rights-Boston, who, since 1998, have held a weekly peace vigil on saturdays from 1-2pm on Boston Common, as well as Veterans for Peace, and the Womens International League For Peace and Freedom.

Demonstrators filled the Boston Common.

A highlight of the demonstration was the naming
of individual victims of drone warfare.

Speakers talked about the many hundreds of people
 killed by US unmanned drones in the wars in
Afghanistan and Pakistan, the use of drones over
Iran and plans to use drones domestically.

White masks were used to evocatively represent
 civilian victims of drone warfare worldwide.

See the videos below:
Drone Death March and Rally
Speech by Jerry Price

This was a preliminary protest to prepare for the national day of anti-drone protests on Saturday April 13, culminating with a mass protest in front of the White House at 12 noon. 

There will also be another anti-drone protest in Boston outside Park St. T Station on April 13th at 1pm.

GET INVOLVED IN APRIL DAYS OF ACTION AGAINST DRONES NATIONWIDE!

*All photos by Maurice Moral

April Days of Action Against Drones: New Hampshire

Members of the NH Palestine Education Network and NH Veterans for Peace demonstrated in Merrimack yesterday in front of the headquarters of Elbit Systems, an Israeli corporation that manufactures drones that have killed civilians in Lebanon and Gaza.

The demonstration emphasized many problematic aspects of drone warfare,
from the circumvention of due process to the killing of civilians.

A strong coalition came out to prove that this New England state
 refuses to be a haven for multinational war profiteers!

See the full video below! Report by the Nashua Telegraph featuring Will Thomas of NH Veterans for Peace

April Days of Action Against Drones continue! Click here to get involved in other New England events.