The Oberlin Coalition Against the War is hosting a regional anti-war conference on campus this weekend, Saturday Dec. 7 and Sunday Dec. 8.
OCAW hopes the conference will fulfill its goal to educate and harmonize youth and student activists from Ohio and its neighboring states. This event, which OCAW has long been planning and organizing, includes addresses given by Oberlin community members, prominent activists, alumni and professors from all walks of the College.
“The theme is organizing the organizers and bringing together youth students activists so that we can come together in a broader coalition,” said junior OCAW member Marianna Leavy-Sperounis. Groups from the surrounding community as well as many colleges and universities throughout the Midwest are expected to attend. Among those are Ohio State University, Michigan State University, University of Toledo, Kent State, Antioch College and the University of Minneapolis.
OCAW is Oberlin’s answer to a growing international anti-war movement and represents students with a wide range of political beliefs and boasts a membership of approximately 150 students.
The organization’s five point agenda is based upon anti-war on Iraq sentiments, a commitment to anti-oppression, a demand for money for jobs and education as opposed to military aggression, an end to the sanctions on Iraq and defense of civil liberties.
The focus of the events to be held this weekend are also centered around these five points.
Workshop topics include the Palestine-Israeli Conflict, international law practices, war and arms trade and the Bush administration’s national security practices among many others.
“We want to come out of [this conference] better educated and with a network [of activists] prepared to call actions and take the movement forward,” OCAW member junior Vanessa Fulton said.
Registration for the three workshop sessions hosted by the conference will be held on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 8 a.m.
Fliers and handouts advocating OCAW’s causes, as well as a schedule of the conference in its totality, are posted throughout Wilder.
Some events can be found in the Review’s Events Calendar, on page four.