Rice Lake

Minocqua and Menomonie have joined the list of Wisconsin communities holding Iraq Moratorium events on Friday, Dec. 19, to call for an end to the war and occupation of Iraq.

Wisconsin is a leader in the national grassroots movement which asks people to act, individually or collectively, on the Third Friday of every month to end the war and occupation.

The Menomonie event -- headed by Uppity Wisconsin's Steve Hanson -- is the result of a new organizing effort in western Wisconsin , with the theme of "Health care, not warfare."

Rice Lake, Superior, and Eau Claire.began holding events in November. Minocqua had been holding Saturday vigils but moved to the Third Friday to join the national network.

The Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice (WNPJ), a statewide coalition of more than 160 groups, has helped spread the Moratorium among its members. The Iraq Moratorium-Wisconsin project is aimed at western Wisconsin communities where the Third Friday activity has not yet taken hold.  Among the additional targets are Hudson, Chippewa Falls, and Ashland.

Wisconsin's Iraq Moratorium campaign, which asks people to act on the Third Friday of every month to end the war and occupation of Iraq, continues to grow.

A new organizing effort in western Wisconsin, with the theme of "Health care, not warfare," has sparked new Moratorium events on Friday, Nov. 21, in Rice Lake, Superior, and Eau Claire.

“People quickly see the connections and respond instantly to the ‘Health care Not Warfare’ theme and the coordinated public lobbying tactic,” organizer Steve Carlson says. More communities are expected to join in December.

The Iraq Moratorium asks people to interrupt their regular routines on the Third Friday of every month and take some action, individually or collectively, to call for an end to the war and occupation of Iraq .

Wisconsin has been a hotbed of Iraq Moratorium activity, with more actions scheduled every month than any other state except California , with six times the population.  The Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice (WNPJ), a statewide coalition of more than 160 groups, has helped spread the Moratorium among its members.

The Iraq Moratorium-Wisconsin project is aimed at communities where the Third Friday activity has not yet taken hold.  Among the additional targets are Hudson, Chippewa Falls, Ashland and Menomonie.