Portside

Donald Trump just ordered the launch of dozens of Tomahawk missiles to strike Syria. It's an illegal and unauthorized escalation that could have devastating consequences, killing innocent Syrians and U.S. service members. Escalation against Syria will not help the victims of this heinous chemical attack, it will not bring the devastating war in Syria to a quicker end, it will not bring back the dead children. It will not defeat ISIS or end terrorism.

Beginning this week, on April 4, peace-loving people around the country are participating in actions honoring Dr. King and readings of this speech, in a campaign to rebuild our movement. There's still time to join or host an event in your community. UFPJ has created a page with resources for you and your organization to host a reading. You can also sign-up right now to participate in a Thunderclap social media campaign with our partners from Veterans for Peace.

The most influential large-scale political action of the '60s was actually in 1971, and you've never heard of it. It was called the Mayday action, and it provides invaluable lessons for today.

Achieving disarmament will probably take more than volunteers sailing into town to host a potluck picnic for yachters and stand-up paddlers. It will probably take more than “people who have never thought about war and peace,” as Jaccard calls them, spotting a sailboat with a peace symbol and wondering what it’s all about. Sometimes it takes something brave and brazen to catch a nation’s attention.

Last week, two important members of the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s and 70s passed away.

When lies are propounded about the American war in Vietnam, they legitimize and justify present USA and future dangerous adventures and prevent us from escaping the dangerous “logic of war” as promoted by our rulers and media.

Michael Yates presents an analysis of how the war was conducted, what its consequences have been for the Vietnamese, how the nature of the war generated ferocious opposition to it (not least by a brave core of U.S. soldiers), how the war's history has been whitewashed, and why it is important to both know what happened in Vietnam and why we should not forget it.

The war continues in those still suffering from its legacy of unexploded ordnance and Agent Orange.

Reader Comments - Vietnam - What Really Happened?; Chapel Hill Murders - Honor Their Memory; Chocolate, Mayan civilization; Ukraine; How Radical Change Occurs; Adjunct Profs; Teacher Unions; West Virginia Coal and Blood; Public Pensions; Water Privatization; Save the Postal Service; Timbuktu; UMass Backs Down on Iranian Student Ban; Artistic Expression; Support the Greek People; Announcements; Today in History - FDR Signs Order for Internment of Japanese Americans