GRAND RAPIDS -- Thirty people attended a rally Saturday at Fountain Street Church to say that "Occupation is Not Liberation!"

There were several speakers from the local Friends community, the Arab-American community, and the American Civil Liberties Union. Most of the speakers discussed future actions that people opposed to the occupation of Iraq can take, including a campaign to meet with local legislators as well as a campaign to encourage people to contact their legislators to highlight the talking points on the future of Iraq put together by the People's Alliance for Justice and Change.

In addition, a new campaign was announced to work to get a resolution passed in Grand Rapids that states that Grand Rapids refuses to enforce the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001. Should the Grand Rapids City Council adopt such a resolution, Grand Rapids would join three states and 118 cities, towns, and counties that have passed resolutions protecting civil liberties.

A number of mock "cluster bomblets" were also distributed to people at the rally. The "bomblets" were created to encourage discussion about what really makes a weapon a "weapon of mass destruction." The following is a photograph of a "bomblet" and the text of the message written on each one:

WARNING!
You are holding a "cluster bomblet"

In addition to the campaigns stated above, the West Michigan Coalition for Justice & Peace is in the process of planning future events.