New York activists protest U.S. bombing in Afghanistan

New York, New York – About 50 protesters gathered at the U.S. Military Recruiting Center at the heart of Times Square, April 14. The protest was an emergency response to Donald Trump’s escalation of the war on war on Afghanistan. On April 13, a GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB), nicknamed the “mother of all bombs,” was dropped on what is purported to be “ISIS targets” in Afghanistan. This is a continuation of a conflict started by the U.S. and NATO 16 years ago, the longest imperialist war the U.S. has ever been in. The dropping of the MOAB on the Achin district has death counts estimated to reach up to 94 people, and a blast radius estimated at one mile.

In response to the attacks on Afghanistan, which show Trump is willing to use weapons of mass destruction, the International League of People’s Struggles (ILPS) made an emergency call to action to protest. The action was attended by NYC Students for Justice in Palestine (NYSJP), Anak Bayan New York, the Committee to Stop Repression, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner’s Network and SPARC. The protesters planted themselves in front of the U.S. Military Recruiting Center, calling for an end to imperialist occupation and shouting anti-war chants. Among these chants were “We demand justice! We demand peace! U.S. out of the Middle East!” “Donald Trump what do you say? How many bombs did you drop today?” and “Money for jobs and education! Not for war and occupation!”

Michela Martinazzi of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) and ILPS had this to say, “Yesterday a 21,000-pound bomb was dropped in Afghanistan. Last week 59 tomahawk missiles were launched into Syria. We have a fleet encroaching on North Korea, and we just put troops in Somalia after 20 years. Donald Trump is beating his war drum and we have to demand an end to all U.S. wars. Demand an end to the U.S. war machine! Demand money to be spent here for jobs, healthcare and education!”

Ann Wright, of Veterans for Peace, a former member of the U.S. military and noted anti-war activist, also attended and spoke. She stated, “I’ve been protesting the war since I resigned from the military and the U.S. government 15 years ago. If I could resign today, I would.”

The dropping of the bomb is just another example of Donald Trump furthering the U.S. imperialist agenda. With his posturing directed at Russia, the People’s Republic of China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; Trump contradicts everything his campaign claimed about “non-intervention.”

Trump is simply another warmonger intent on destabilizing oppressed nations in the interests of capitalism. Trump’s actions do not simply mirror the harmful U.S. actions in places like Syria, Libya, Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, Vietnam and countless other nations; they are a direct and aggressive escalation. On April 7, Trump launched 59 Tomahawk missiles at the Al Shayrat Airfield in Syria, a direct act of aggression against the popular government of President Bashar Al-Assad. Rather than condemning an action Trump had himself once warned against, the neoliberal politicians in both the Democratic and Republican parties praised Trump’s actions.