http://www.michigandaily.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/11/3dcf40ccc9909 (article removed)

Divided and conquered
Anti-War Action should stay focused on Iraq

From the Daily
November 11, 2002

Anti-War Action is a new organization on campus focusing on building a
coalition against the possibility of war in Iraq. The group, started by
College of Literature, Science and Arts sophomore Max Sussman and LSA junior
Mike Medow has members from many progressive alliances on campus and from
greater Ann Arbor.
One thing many people agreed on at AWA's first mass meeting was that the
group should not be distracted by other issues that may divide the
coalition. The Israel/Palestine debate is one possible issue that could
interfere, as AWA has members in both the Progressive Israel Alliance as
well as the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and Muslim Students
Association, along with other organizations who take a political stance on
the topic.

Keeping the focus of the organization on the war in Iraq is a noble
endeavor; however, some members of the ADC and MSA don't think so. While AWA
meetings have tried to stay focused on the issue at hand, ADC and MSA
members have constantly tried to force anti-Israel sentiment into the group.
At the first meeting when leader Max Sussman suggested that AWA should stay
focused on the issue, an ADC member immediately interjected that in order to
be against the war, one has to be against Israel.

First of all, this is a patently false and intellectually bankrupt
assertion. Secondly, this is highly damaging to the potential influence AWA
could have on the issue of the anti-war movement as a whole. Historical
evidence shows that divisive, secondary issues have killed progressive
movements in the past, causing excessive infighting, stealing energy away
from the main issue. Such behavior could do the same to anti-war movement,
something the ADC and the MSA hopefully wish not to do, but unfortunately,
their insistence on forcing the Israel/Palestine issue on AWA is
disturbingly reminiscent of the divisive tactics FBI infiltrators used in
the 1960s to break the power of groups such as Students for a Democratic
Society and the Black Panthers.

Furthermore, AWA is faced with other groups trying to push more far-fetched
agendas, also taking away focus from the war. For example, some members of
Students for Choice want the group to state that the war is anti-feminist
because women who serve in the military are unable to get abortions in
countries where they may be stationed, like Saudi Arabia. This argument is
hardly a legitimate primary case against war, and indirectly implies that to
be against the war one must be pro-choice. This is not only untrue but such
a viewpoint will stifle the inclusivity of AWA.

AWA has the potential to revive what Ann Arbor's anti-Vietnam movement left
in the 1970s. It may be able to bring together organizations and individuals
that do not normally agree to stand against the one thing they all believe
is unjust. But the behavior of such organizations and individuals that come
with intention of pushing their own agendas is selfish and inappropriate and
will be the largest roadblock for the anti-war movement to succesfully
traverse. The AWA leaders were right to encourage that members remained
focused on the war; hopefully its members will realize that such a strategy
is the most effective and pragmatic way to build a movement.

http://www.michigandaily.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/12/3dd09044b5f1e?in_archive=1

Correction

From the Daily
November 12, 2002

Yesterday's editorial "Divided and conquered," contained several errors
- The opinions of certain members of the Muslim Students Association and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee did not necessarily represent those of the organization they belong to.

- The phrase "constantly tried to force anti-Israel sentiment" into the group inaccurately gave the impression that there was a concerted effort to shape AWA's agenda.

- Students For Choice has not asked AWA to adopt their reasons for opposing the war.

- Mike Medow and Max Sussman were misidentified as leaders of Anti-War Action when they should have been identified as members.