Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
Post Office Box 7213
Ann Arbor, MI 48107
press@studentsforademocraticsociety.org
www.studentsforademocraticsociety.org

Contact: Pat Korte 860.912.3524
Chloe Watlington 619.933.3814
Thomas Good 347.524.5631

March 15, 2006
For Immediate Release

P R E S S R E L E A S E

STUDENTS FOR A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY (SDS) HAS ISSUED A CALL
FOR YOUTH AND STUDENTS TO JOIN THE NYC ANTI-WAR MARCH PROTESTING
THE THIRD ANNIVERSARY OF THE US INVASION AND OCCUPATION OF IRAQ

New York, NY. The New York City Chapters of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) have endorsed the War Resisters League call for a solemn procession to commemorate the loss of life in the Iraq War. The procession will be held on Sunday, March 19th - the third anniversary of the US invasion and occupation. SDS' New York City chapters are asking their members and friends to assemble at 1 PM at 59th Street and Fifth Avenue (SW corner, near the fountain), Manhattan. Participants will step off at approximately 1:30 PM, proceeding to the recruiting center at Times Square and on down to the Theatre District.

"As far as I am aware, this is the first SDS anti-war march in New York City since 1969", said Thomas Good, one of four SDS activists who called for the formation of a national organization this past Martin Luther King Day. "Therefore we are very pleased to announce to the press when they ask us: 'where are the youth?' - they are right here. And I am very proud to be marching alongside the student activists - as a member of Movement for a Democratic Society, the post-grad arm of SDS", he added.

"Today we are experiencing endless war, which tears through the Middle East ruining families and tradition. At the heart of this imperialism is our silence...who would we be if we did not fight back?" asked Chloe Watlington, a student and member of New School SDS.

Marching with the student activists will be members of the Industrial Workers of the World. Many members of SDS are also "Wobblies". The Starbucks Workers Union (part of the IWW) is composed mainly of young people, many of whom are students working their way through college. "A student and worker alliance that struggles to end this barbaric war is something that is long overdue", said Daniel Gross an IWW organizer and law student. "US and Iraqi workers are being senselessly slaughtered. Working people in this country need to come together and stop the war machine", he added.

Students from several SDS chapters will be marching: Columbia, New School, Pratt Institute and Pace SDS are all taking part. SDSers from Connecticut and New Jersey chapters will also be a part of the event. 18 year old SDS activist Pat Korte of the Stonington, Connecticut High School chapter said: "The anti-war movement needs to step it up if they want to put an end to America's bloodletting in the Middle East, and it's up to the students to up the ante. We need to bring the war machine to its knees. It's time for a unified student and non-student coalition to put pressure on the real terrorists - the ones in the White House. The "War on Terror" is not only affecting the people of the Middle East and the soldiers being sent there, it is directly affecting students in almost every aspect of their life - their economic situation, eduction, freedom, and privacy."

Participants are being asked to maintain a solemn silence and nonviolent disposition throughout the march.

Among the are organizers of the event are members of the War Resisters League, Students for a Democratic Society, the Industrial Workers of the World and several other anti-war and labor organizations. The march has been endorsed by the New York Metro Alliance of Anarchists (NYMAA), The Riverside Church Global Justice & Peace Ministries, St. Mary's Manhattanville Church, the Socialist Party of New York City and Upfront News.

SDS is an education and social action organization dedicated to increasing democracy in all phases of our common life. It seeks to promote the active participation of young people in the formation of a movement to build a society free from poverty, ignorance, war, exploitation, racism and sexism.

Check Out Photos From The Pace Protest On 3/13
NLN