CAMBRIDGE CONFERENCE

I took the bus early this morning from Portland to Boston in order to get to the Asia-Pacific peace conference being held in Cambridge at the Friends Meeting House.  I will speak on a panel after lunch.

I got here about 30 minutes after the event began and caught the end of speech by Hideki Yoshikawa from Okinawa who was sharing stories about their struggle against expanding US military bases.  Other activists from Korea and China will also be talking. 

Hyun Lee, the Korean activist from New York City, who came to Maine last week to our rally at Bath Iron Works is here.  She, along with Joseph Gerson from the AFSC who organized today's event, also spoke in Orono and Brunswick last week when they came to Maine.

These events in Maine and here are being held in response to the call by the National Working Group for Peace & Demilitarization in Asia and the Pacific for nationwide actions this spring to bring this important issue to the public's attention.

The Obama 'pivot' into the Asia-Pacific to encircle China will be an expensive and provocative undertaking.

I take the bus back to Portland tonight.