May 31, 2013 Contact: Nancy Mancias, codepink.nancy@gmail.com Alli McCracken, alli@codepink.org, (860) 575-5692 CODEPINK to Stage Creative Action on the Eve Of WikiLeaks Whistleblower Bradley Manning's Court Martial WHEN: Saturday, June 1, 2013 4:00pm WHERE: Llewellyn Ave, just west of US 175 ***VISUAL OPPORTUNITY*** (Ft. Meade, MD), The
peace group CODEPINK will join the efforts of the Bradley Manning
Support Network in a march and rally outside Ft. Meade where the
WikiLeaks whistleblower Bradley Manning is scheduled to face court
martial on Monday, June 3, 2013.
They will dress as Lady Justice, blindfolded, with togas and scales,
in front of a huge mural depicting Manning with a Medal of Honor, the
military's highest award. They will speak out about how Manning's
revelations have contributed to the group's work for peace and justice.
Private Bradley Manning, a 25 year-old US
Army intelligence analyst, stands accused of leaking the largest amount
of classified information in American history to the whistleblower
website WikiLeaks.org. CODEPINK activists have been standing in support
of Bradley Manning's action since his imprisonment three years ago.
When State Department spokesperson P.J. Crowley was forced to resign
after criticizing the Pentagon's treatment of Manning, calling the
treatment "ridiculous, counterproductive, and stupid!", CODEPINK
activists stripped their clothing to symbolize how the prison guards
had taken away Bradley Manning's clothing. Bradley Manning has been held in prison without charges for years. On Monday, June 13, 2013, Manning will finally face court martial for "aiding the enemy,"
a capital offense. Manning's actions exposed U.S. war crimes in Iraq
and Afghanistan, and exposed abuses of other governments that helped
spark the democratic uprisings in the Middle East, also known as the
Arab Spring. That's why Manning is a hero to many people around the
world, people who believe that transparency is the hallmark of
democratic governance. ### CODEPINK is a women-initiated grassroots
peace and social justice movement working to end U.S. funded wars and
occupations, to challenge militarism globally, and to redirect our
resources into health care, education, green jobs and other
life-affirming activities. |