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May
2, 2008
 As
we are showered with flowers and chocolate this Mother's Day,
let us not forget the mothers of Iraq.
Instead
of lavish brunch buffets, they are faced with malnourished
babies and contaminated drinking water; breakfast
in bed is not an option when there is no home to return to.
 Almost
five million Iraqis have been displaced by violence in their
country, the majority of them women and children.
As Congress prepares to vote on another supplemental bill to
fund the war in Iraq for another year, let's urge them to stop
funding war, and fund the growing refugee crisis instead. It
is unconscionable of us to not help try to rebuild the lives
we have shattered.
Call
your Member of Congress today at (202-225-3121) and say "No
money for war. Money for refugees!"
 CODEPINK
co-founder Medea Benjamin is currently meeting with Iraqi
women refugees in Jordan and Syria, learning first hand about
their plight.
Here,
Medea shares Nadia's story:
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"Nadia
is a young woman with a round, jolly face and a quick
smile that belies the tragedy within. Married in 2002, a
year later, the couple was eagerly awaiting their first
child. When the baby was born, Nadia's husband was out of
town on business. He was rushing back to Baghdad to see
his baby daughter when a US convoy approached from the
opposite direction, spraying bullets. He was killed
instantly. Daria never had a chance to meet her
father.
The mother and daughter remained in
Baghdad, but in February 2007, American soldiers broke
into their home and terrorized them. That's when Nadia
decided to flee to Jordan. Daria was so traumatized by the
raid, she lost her ability to control her bladder and has
frequent nightmares.
Nadia now faces life as a
single mother in a strange land, with no income and no
hope. 'The Americans invaded my country to steal our
wealth, and in the process they stole my personal
treasure-my loving husband.'
'I'm
so sorry, so sorry,' was all I could mutter as we hugged
and cried."
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To
hear another Iraqi mother's story first hand, be sure to view
this heartbreaking
video
and read Medea's
trip blogs here.
 As
we pressure Congress to fund aid for refugees, we can do our
part, as well. This Mother's Day, please give
a gift to aid Iraqi women refugees in your mother's name.
What better way to honor the true anti-war intention of
Mother's Day. As Julia Ward Howe wrote in 1870, "Arise
then...women of this day!/Arise, all women who have hearts!"
Let us rise up together and help the women our administration
has so tragically beaten down.
In
the great and general interests of peace,
Alicia,
Dana, Desiree, Farida, Gael, Gayle, Jodie, Liz, Medea, Nancy,
Rae, and Tighe
P.S.
 This
June and July, CODEPINK
is offering 8
week-long (Sunday-Friday) activist training and action camps
at our Pink
House on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Passionate about
ending the US occupation of Iraq? Curious about how Congress
really works? Want to join with peacemakers from around the
country to reclaim your government this summer? All you need
to make that commitment to a better world is apply to join us
in DC this summer! For more information and sample schedule,
click
here.
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