Social Justice
of Peace
NOAC
A demonstration
Sisters Sandy Lo Porto and Louise Szerpicki joined about 1,000 peace advocates in a rally in downtown Cleveland on Saturday, November 16, 2002. The group marched into the downtown area of Cleveland, Ohio to oppose President Bush’s war on Iraq and to promote the use of diplomacy, rather than military aggression, in dealing with Saddam Hussein. The rally was sponsored by the Northeast Ohio Antiwar Coalition (NOAC). The purpose of the gathering, as stated by the NOAC , called for:
“No war on Iraq! Our hope is to communicate through our number and our messages, that a war for power and oil, a war against a nation that poses no direct threat to the United States, and a war that will take away precious resources from jobs, education and health care, is a war we cannot and will not support in any way.”
The rally also coincided with the events in Fort Benning, Georgia, where there was a rally to close the School of the Americas/WHISC. Srs. Sandy and Louise joined this demonstration for peace in support of their sisters in Georgia and in visible expression of the Franciscan commitment to peacemaking.
Our hope is to communicate through our number and our messages, that a war for power and oil, a war against a nation that poses no direct threat to the United States, and a war that will take away precious resources from jobs, education and health care, is a war we cannot and will not support in any way.”