The Confronting Empire Group, one of the groups organizing against Bush's visit to Grand Rapids on May 21 at Calvin College, has organized to protest Bush's visit for the following reasons:
We are opposed to the War/Occupation of Iraq - the war is illegal, has cost the lives of thousands of Iraqis and hundreds of US soldiers, and has benefited primarily US-based corporations who have profited from the War/Occupation.
We see the occupation of Iraq as an exstention of US Global Power - The US is not interested in democracy in Iraq, the Middle East, or anywhere else for that matter. The US has a history of supporting dictators, like Saddam Hussein, when it meets the needs of US foreign policy. The key to the occupation and all US foreign policy, is economic hegemony, which necessitates military aggression.
