New York City March for Peace this Saturday

From an email I received from United For Peace and Justice:

March for Peace, Justice and Democracy
Saturday, April 29 — New York City

Assemble beginning at 10:30AM — 22nd Street & Broadway
March steps off at noon
Grassroots Action Festival in Foley Square, 1:00PM-6:00PM
Maps: Assembly Area & March Route | Festival

Five days from now, people from diverse communities, from all walks of life, will fill the streets of Manhattan with outrage at our country’s current policies and hope for a better future. Unified in our determined opposition to the ongoing war in Iraq, we are also demanding new priorities and a new direction for our government.

As Bush’s approval ratings keep sinking to historic lows, we need to turn the widespread unhappiness with this administration into action for change. Will you be there with us on Saturday, April 29? Will you help us in these last few days as we spread the word far and wide?

The early weather forecast looks great (low to mid 60s, mostly sunny), but rain or shine, we are marching! Puppets, marching bands, street theater groups, and other performers will all be participating in the march. We encourage you to bring musical instruments, banners, and other things you create to help express the messages of the day. (Reminder: The NYPD only allows signs and banners to be carried on cardboard poles; wooden, metal, and fiberglass poles are prohibited.)

We still need people to volunteer with every aspect of the day — please sign up on our website or call our office at 212-868-5545.

A powerful array of activities are planned both before and after the march. Some highlights:

* Pre-March Labor Rally: 10:30 am, 19th Street between Park Ave. South and Broadway

A very large turn out is expected from the labor movement, and as people gather for this contingent, there will be a rally with representatives of the many unions involved in this effort. As part of the Festival at the end of the march, there will be a Labor tent that will help you get more involved in connecting the labor and antiwar movements.

* Pre-March Interfaith Religious Service: 9:40 am, 19th Street, between Broadway and Fifth Ave.

People from many faiths and religious traditions will gather for a shabbat service before the march begins. Clergy and Laity Concerned about Iraq is also organizing an afternoon of activities at their tent at the Festival after the march.

* Grassroots Action Festival: 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm, Foley Square.

The festival will feature 19 themed tents, providing resources from hundreds of groups and campaigns. You’ll find information about a wide variety of ways to take action against the war — from pressuring legislators to resisting military recruitment efforts to engaging in nonviolent civil disobedience. You’ll find displays and materials that will highlight the connections between the war and the struggles for women’s rights, for racial justice, for immigrant rights, and for a sustainable environment. There will also be a special tent with peace activities for children, and much more.

If you are still looking for transportation to NYC, please check the Transportation Board on our website. There are some offers of housing available on our Housing Board, and if you live in the NYC area and can offer housing, we encourage you to post your information right now.

While a great deal of work has already been done to get the word out, there is still more to do — and we need your help. Wouldn’t it be a shame to get calls on Sunday from people telling you they would have marched but they didn’t know about the demonstration? In these next few days we can make sure that doesn’t happen:

1) Send this email — or your own message — to your friends, relatives, and every appropriate email list. And be sure to send that out today!

2) Tell your friends, family, and people you work with or go to school with. There are leaflets you can download from the website, and we encourage you to make as many copies as you can and get those out to folks.

3) If you are part of a group or an organization, make sure they are contacting their members and posting the information on their websites.

4) Call in to a radio talk show over the next few days, and talk about why you are coming to NYC. Be sure to mention www.april29.org, so everyone can get the information!

Sounds like a great time if you can make it.