New Mexico, one of the poorest states in the United States, is also one of the most militarized. There are the two nuclear weapons laboratories, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque. There’s the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, where nuclear waste from the labs is stored and that the Department of Energy wants to expand to accept more nuclear weapons waste. Then there’s the proposal by Holtec International to temporarily store 100,000 metric tons of high-level nuclear waste transported from reactors around the country in southern New Mexico. The New Mexico state legislature managed to pass a bill blocking Holtec’s plan, but there’s a question of whether the federal government, which regulates nuclear waste under the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, can preempt the state’s new law.
And how many military bases are there in New Mexico? There are four: Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque; Canon Air Force Base in Curry County near Clovis; White Sands Missile Range Army Base in Otero County; and Holloman Air Force Base in Otero County near Alamogordo. Each is known for something “special”: Kirtland is where everyone suspects the nuclear missiles are stored in the Manzano Mountains; Canon is the base responsible for all those low flying C-130 turbo planes buzzing over our northern New Mexico villages; White Sands Missile Range is the largest military base in the United States; and Holloman Air Force Base is now the second location in the U.S. where drone pilots are trained.
Shut Down Drone Warfare is a mobilization begun at Creech AFB in Nevada to educate the public and potential drone pilots about this remotely controlled killing machine. After 14 years of peaceful protest to resist drone warfare at Creech AFB, Shut Down Drone Warfare co-sponsors Code Pink, Ban Killer Drones, and Veterans for Peace are sponsoring Spring Action Week, April 15 – 22, 2023 at Holloman Drone Base, Southern New Mexico. The spring week of resistance will feature:
• Daily themed vigils on Monday-Friday during the commute hours at Holloman, 6:30 to 8:30 am and 3:30 to 5:30 pm to foster GI resistance;
• Monday, April 17 documentary film screening at New Mexico State University, Battles Beyond the Horizon (2023) & National Bird (2016);
• April 17&18: Nonviolence and Peacekeepers Workshops led by Elliot Adams, VFP;
• April 19: Powerful Nonviolent Day of Resistance. BE THERE! (“Risk-arrest” action is optional and support roles are equally important)
• April 20, Thursday Evening Panel with music & singing by Emma’s Revolution and other entertainers.
Other activities will continue throughout the week with a possible peace march from Alamogordo to Holloman AFB, an 11-12 mile walk.
You can REGISTER HERE!
Background
According to the Shut Down Drone Warfare website:
“Creech AFB in Nevada, is now understood to be the ‘grandfather’ of all U.S. drone bases: The covert U.S. Drone Assassination Program started there, and it remains the central control center in a complex assassin drones network. Shut Down Creech, our 14 year campaign to resist drone warfare at Creech AFB, with week-long peaceful protests has been successful: Our persistence has contributed greatly to the rapid turnover of drone pilots and operators in the program.”
“The drone pilot/operator training program was moved from Creech to Holloman Air Force Base a few years ago. This explains the noticeably decreased commute traffic and decreased number of Reaper drones flying over the Nevada desert. Newer recruits are more likely to be impacted and called to their conscience. The secrecy of the drone program keeps it from the public eye. ‘Drone strikes’ are rarely mentioned in the media or by the military, and the term ‘Air Strikes’ provides convenient ‘shelter’ from public scrutiny. Our presence will uncover the secrecy!”
This is a massive undertaking with an extensive organizing team. You can contact any of them for more information:
Organizers
Toby Blomé, CODEPINK
SF Bay Area
SDDW Coordinator
Toby4Peace@sonic.net
Ken Mayers, Veterans For Peace, Santa Fe, NM
Transportation Coordinator
kenmayers@vfp-santafe.org
Virginia Hauflaire, CODEPINK
Phoenix, AZ
Logistics Coordinator
vhauflaire@gmail.com
Charles Powell
Veterans For Peace
Albuquerque, NM
Outreach & Media
crpowell5@gmail.com
Denise Sellers
Veterans For Peace
Outreach & Sponsorship
denise.sellers13@gmail.com
Greg Corning
Veterans For Peace
Santa Fe, NM
Outreach & Logistics
cogreg@gmail.com
Other Contacts
Denise Hingle
CODEPINK
Travel Stipend Coordinator
dhingle@mindspring.com
La Jicarita 