News: Hip Hop Caucus President to Use Civil Disobedience at White House
Giving Congress up to September 21 to stop the invasion of Iraq, Reverend Lennox Yearwood, CEO of the Hip Hop Caucus of Washington D.C., and Church of God and Christ minister, plans to lead a press conference in front of the White House to protest the war in Iraq on Thursday (Sept. 21).
Yearwood, citing a moral obligation, says that he, along with 270 cities and 350 organizations nationwide, will no longer be passive observers of Bush's War on Terror. "We are in a time of peril in which people of morals have to stand up. We are willing to do whatever it takes-all on peace-to urge Congress and the administration to take a new course on Iraq, including a timely and responsible withdrawal of troops," he stated.
Known for his work with ubiquitous hip hop stars such as Jay-Z and Diddy (as senior consultant to their "Voice Your Choice" and "Citizen Change" groups, respectively) as well as serving as national grassroots and political director for Russell Simmons' Hip Hop Summit Action Network, Yearwood and about fifty supporters plan to demonstrate with speeches and a public signing of a "Declaration of Peace" document.
Some of the speech participants slated to be in attendance are Congressman John Lewis (GA) and national religious leader Father Louis Vitale, former pastor of Saint Barnabas Church.
Yearwood intends to present the "Declaration of Peace" to President Bush by approaching the White House gates with interlocked arms. Yearwood adds, "We will do whatever it takes [even] if it calls to be arrested or bodily harmed, we must make a stand."
Events, dubbed "A Week of Action," will follow with peace vigils, fund-raising dinners, workshops, peace caravans, pole planting, and parades throughout the country and in Puerto Rico until the 28.
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