Keynote Address by Dr. Sami A. Al-Arian at the MacDill Air Force Base Rally of the Florida Alliance for Peace and Social Justice in Tampa, Florida, on Sunday, November 3rd, 2002.

Friends and fellow anti-war and pro-peace patriots My fellow Americans of all stripes and colors,

European, African, Asian, Latino, Arab, and Middle Eastern Americans.

Citizens and Immigrants.

Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Agnostics, Atheists and Others.

I speak to you today, as all of us, precious human beings endowed by the Creator as free people with dignity and honor and respect.

No power, not even the government, should undermine your freedoms or dignity, your rights or privileges under the constitution.

We are here today to make a strong statement and to speak on behalf of the silent majority in this country who are steadfastly against the looming war with Iraq.

I have a few questions that beg to be answered.

* Are any of the president, vice president, cabinet members, White House staff ,or those who advocate war- are any of their children going to fight this ugly war?
* Are any members of Congress who voted for the war going to lay their children’s lives on the line in Iraq?
* Is there a single soldier, who is going to fight this war, who is a son or daughter of any CEO across the USA? If not, why should then the sons and daughters of ordinary Americans die for oil or for the principal of pre-emption on a phony threat.
We are here today to lend support to many in the military, who oppose the war and against the politicians and the warmongers, and the so-called the neo-cons.

Why are we against the war?

We are against the war because we don’t want a perpetual conflict between America and the Islamic world. From that part of the world, it will be looked at as a new crusade and it would unleash a new wave of hate and violence. And we must stop that.

There are two parties to the clash of civilizations theory, a clash between the West and Islam and we must resist both with the same determination and vigor.

The first party is those in this country, who are eager to wage a war against Islam, starting with Iraq and its people- a war without any provocation. And we must resist them.

And the second party is those who are overseas like Bin Laden and his supporters, who want to see a war between Islam and the West and we must resist them as well.

These clashies, as I call them, would love to see a bloodbath because of their distorted view of world politics and history.

People in the Muslim world are asking if North Korea president’s name was Abdul Kim Il, would the administration be conducting diplomacy or war against a declared dictator and mad man with access to weapons of mass destruction. Why the double standard? Why?

People the world over are asking why do we need to sacrifice tens, or perhaps hundreds of thousands of innocent people, haven’t we killed enough?

Saddam is no doubt a brutal dictator, and he’s hardly the only one in that neighborhood, but does that justify the killing of thousands of his victims to get rid of him? This is insanity.

Or does this policy just represent blind hatred of the other, like when former secretary of state Madeleine Half-bright said on national TV in 1996, that the killing of a half-million Iraqi children was worth it! Shame on her. Iraqi children are no collateral damage.

Civil liberties at home

Brothers and sisters,

Rest assured that when we have war, destruction and oppression abroad, then, we’ll have repression, injustice and civil rights abuses at home.

Our movement is a movement in defense of freedom, dignity, and human rights for all people across the globe.

We should not sacrifice our freedoms and civil liberties to feel safe. Yet, this is what many politicians and powerful groups want us to submit to. And we must say No.

We should not surrender to intimidation or fear so we may feel secure. Yet, this is what many politicians and powerful groups want us to bow to. And we must say No.

We should not allow fake policies and the ENRON code of ethics to rule our society in the name of security. Yet, this is what many politicians and powerful groups want us to give in to. And we must say No.

We must fight evil at all levels. And we must resist.

We must replace the forces of hatred with the army of love.

We must change the tone of bigotry with the language of embrace.

We must end the threat of exclusion with the promise of inclusion.

We must fight oppression and injustice, so justice can roll down and fill our streams and rivers

We must not confuse patriotism with zealotry. We must not mistake patriotism with nationalism.

To be patriotic is to be able to question government policy at times of crisis.

To be patriotic is to stand up for the bill of rights and the constitution at times of uncertainty and insecurity.

To be patriotic is to speak up against the powerful in defense of the weak and the voiceless.

To be patriotic is to be willing to pay the price to preserve our freedoms, our dignity, and our rights.

To be patriotic is to challenge the abuses of the PATRIOT Act.

My friends,

* We need a call to educate our fellow citizens; that our constitutional rights and freedoms are the most important in the world, and for maintaining what’s unique about our society.
* We need to unite against the forces of war and destruction, darkness and injustice, of bigotry and exclusion, of hatred and fear.
* We need to build coalitions for civil rights, for peace, to speak up and contact our elected officials and tell them with one unified voice:

That America is the land of the free and the home of the brave, not the land of fear, and the home of the warmongers.

That America is the beacon of freedom and peace, not insecurity and destruction.

Let’s keep the spirit of Freedom alive. Let’s keep the torch of peace lit.

Let’s remember that dissent and criticism are the lifeblood of freedom in a democracy.

Stop the double standard

The president says that he wants peace. But let’s look at who is his model for peace. He calls the certified butcher of Sabra and Shatilla and Jenin, the current Crime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, a man of peace. Not even Sharon believes that.

As a university professor, who does not speak on its behalf, let me conclude by giving you this short quiz.

# To which country had 15 out of the 19 hijackers belonged to in the horrible Sept. 11th attacks? (Saudi Arabia)
# Which country has a mad-man, a dictator who supposedly killed hundreds of thousands of his country men, and who just declared that he has nuclear weapons? (North Korea)
# Which country alone in the M.E. has nuclear weapons and refuses to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and bars international inspections? (Israel)
# Which country in the M.E. have been violating international borders of other sovereign states with warplanes, artillery, and naval gunfire in the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s and beyond? (Israel)
# Which country in the M.E. still occupies other people’s land and refuses to withdraw in defiance of the international community and threatens world peace? (Israel)
# Which country in the M.E. created over 800,000 refugees, who now number over 5M and refuses to allow them to return to their homes, farms, and businesses? (Israel)
# Which country in the M.E. has the second strongest lobby in the US that has manipulated American foreign policy for decades? (Israel)
# Which country in the M.E. had employed a spy, Jonathan pollard, to steal America’s national secrets, and turned this sensitive information to our enemy, the Soviet Union, and then rewarded the traitor with $1M and gave him citizenship? (Israel)
# Which country on this planet, earth, is in defiance, not of 16 Security Council resolutions, but in violation of 71 UN Security Council resolutions (more than all other rebellious countries in the history of the UN combined)? (Israel)
# Which country has been under punitive sanctions for 12 years, killing 1.7 million of its civilians, being bombed every week, and we’re about to go to war against because supposedly it did not implement UN resolutions? (Iraq)

No more wars. No more wars. No more destruction. Say yes to peace.

Say yes to life. Thank you very much and God bless you all.