'Color of War' tour comes to Boston

July 6, 2004

The Fellowship of Reconciliation, the nation's oldest anti-war organization, is bringing its 'Color of War' national speakers' tour to Boston on July 22. The 'Color of War' looks at the impact of war – and the system that supports it – on poor people and people of color in the United States and globally.

As violence continues in Iraq, there is talk of sending tens of thousands more troops – and even of reinstating conscription. Even without a draft, aggressive military recruitment of poor and Third World youth has escalated. With a draft, as the Vietnam War demonstrated, poor people and people of color will inevitably be conscripted in far larger proportions than middle-class whites.

The war economy post 9/11 has already adversely affected communities of color and the poor. "The militarization of the economy needed to support war dramatically affects spending priorities," said Ibrahim Ramey, disarmament coordinator at the Fellowship of Reconciliation and 'Color of War' organizer. "Our speakers will address the connection between current levels of military spending and the structural "disinvestment" in housing, health care, education, job formation and the environment.  Simply put, $1 billion spent in the defense industry generates far fewer jobs than the same $1 billion spent on housing, mass transit or health care."

'Color of War' in Boston:

When: 7-9 p.m. July 22, 2004

Where: Office of Union of Minority Neighborhoods, 21 Fellows Street, Roxbury, MA. (On Silver Line, 3 blocks from T Orange Line train at Mass. Avenue)

Speakers include:

• Chuck Turner,  Boston City Council
• Meizhu Lui, Executive Director, United for a Fair Economy
• Horace Small, Executive Director, Union of Minority Neighborhoods
• Ibrahim Ramey, National Disarmament Program, Fellowship of Reconciliation

The 'Color of War' has held events in Camden, NJ, and Philadelphia. Future venues for the Color of War Tour include New York City and Chicago.

Contacts:

Horace Small:  Union of Minority Neighborhoods  617-541-4111
Ibrahim Ramey:  Fellowship of Reconciliation   (845) 358-4601  disarm@forusa.org

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