On September 11, 2001, War Resisters League staff person David McReynolds, wrote this from the WRL National Office which was only a mile and half north of the World Trade Towers:
"As we write, Manhattan feels under siege, with all bridges, tunnels, and subways closed, and tens of thousands of people walking slowly north from Lower Manhattan. As we sit in our offices here at War Resisters League, our most immediate thoughts are of the hundreds if not thousands of New Yorkers who have lost their lives in the collapse of the World Trade Center. The day is clear, the sky is blue, but vast clouds billow over the ruins where so many have died, including a great many rescue workers."
Before the end of that day, before it was known who was responsible, the statement was adopted by WRL distributed far and wide.
How could an organization be so clear on such a confusing day? Because WRL believes that war is a crime against humanity.
This leaflet was created from the text of that statement:
Six weeks later WRL published the Nov-Dec 2001 issue of The Nonviolent Activist, "Drum of War, Voices for Peace", an important reprentation of WRL's principles and analysis, as Wendy Schwartz wrote in "Pacifism in a Time of National Pain". Prescient articles included, "A Blank Check for the Pentagon", "Our One-Dimentional Media", "Counter-Recruitment in a Time of Revenge", "The Constitution in Danger", and "The Other Victims: Arab-Americans and U.S.Muslims."
- blog post by Joanne Sheehan
