National Mobilization to Nonviolently Resist Killer Drones

   Spring Action:  March 26- April 2, 2022

(Saturday through Saturday)

 

Sponsored by CODEPINK & Veterans For Peace

 

UPDATE:  (Mar. 3, 2022)  Since the Covid pandemic is waning somewhat, we have revised our COVID GUIDELINES, to best address current needs. In addition, we are offering a small number of beds, one person per room, for those most in need. Put in your requests early.  Hope you will join us!

 

 

STOLEN LIVES:  The 7 Ahmadi Children, killed by U.S. drone attack on Aug 29, 2021

 

Our Spring Action is again dedicated to The Ahmadi Family, who lost 10 beloved family members, including young children, by this reckless U.S. drone attack on August 29, 2021. Broken promises: Though the Pentagon promised condolence payments and assistance for relocation to the U.S., to this date the Ahmadi family have received no reparations. We stand with all Defenseless Drone Victims living under and terrorized daily by U.S. Drones. We thank all the courageous drone whistleblowers, whose actions helped give a voice for the voiceless drone victims around the globe. Drone whistleblower Daniel Hale is currently serving 45 months in jail for exposing the truth. Learn more and support Daniel Hale at:  StandWithDanielHale.org. 

OUR DEMAND: Prosecute all drone base commanders and higher up U.S. officials most responsible for drone war crimes. Pardon Daniel Hale, who exposed the drone war crimes!  FREE DANIEL HALE NOW!

Our 2022 weeklong spring convergence to resist U.S. killer drones in the Nevada desert has been scheduled for March 26- April 2, 2022! We can't wait to work together again to nonviolently oppose the barbaric and deadly U.S. drone assassination program at Creech AFB that terrorizes communities around the world. 

Shut Down Creech, (SDC) co-sponsored by CODEPINK and Veterans For Peace, is a national campaign to "shut down" the criminal U.S. drone terror program. The campaign is a call for coast to coast mobilization for bi-annual week-long resistance in the spring and fall, at Creech Air Force Base, a principal drone control base in Indian Springs, Nevada, an hour north of Las Vegas. Using the powerful tool of nonviolent Gandhian resistance and peaceful protest, we unveil the lies and misinformation, educate, break the silence and put our bodies on the line for the global defenseless living under the daily terror of  remotely controlled U.S. militarized drones. We invite other organizations to join this important campaign.

Registration Form Here. Please fill out this form even if you are not yet sure about coming in the spring. A transportation form, asking about your travel plans to/from SDC, will be available in March 2022. A pledge to nonviolence guidelines and participation in nonviolence training, is required for full participation. We invite you to join us in part or all of this week of nonviolent resistance, in a united front to oppose U.S. killer drones and help put an end to this tool used for U.S. global domination.

 Video sampler of 13 years of Our Drone Resistance, by Denise Hingle (5 min.)

WEEK OF ACTION: March 26- April 2, 2022 

With sadness we commemorate the 20 Years of U.S. War on Afghanistan, the most droned place on earth and one of the poorest nations. Since the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, we are skeptical that any meaningful change in US policy will occur, as long as covert CIA and "special forces" remain and Biden's promised "over the horizon" drones continue to threaten peace. We stand in solidarity with the Afghan people (and all victims living under drones) and defend their right to live without U.S. occupiers, illegal drone attacks, and unlawful drone surveillance that terrorize their people and violate their national sovereignty.

Activists who can only participate in part of the week's activities are urged to arrive by the evening on Saturday March 26 so we will all be together on Sunday to plan for the week including making preparations for a peaceful civil resistance. Participation in activities that include risk of arrest are optional, and low-risk "support roles" are equally needed and appreciated. Due to the pandemic, and the higher risk for infection in jail, we are not planning any actions that present a high risk for arrest.

The scheduled program will be available by mid-March. If you can only participate for a couple of days, we recommend arriving late Monday night (March 28) and departing in the morning or afternoon on Thurs, (March 31 - 32). However, we welcome participation on any days one is able, and Sunday, March 27 will be an important day to participate in team building and preparation for the week ahead.

DAILY ACTIONS: Peaceful Daily Vigils at Creech Killer Drone Base during rush hour commute times, Monday-Friday, March 26- April 2, 6:30-8:30am and 3:30-5:30pm. On Friday, there will only be a morning vigil, followed by closing activities in the afternoon and evening.  (Everyone departs by noon on Sat, April 2nd.)

Hundreds of cars enter and exit the base at commute times. We stretch ourselves out along highway 95, in front of the base, with large signs, banners and other visuals/props throughout the week, with daily vigil themes (NO DRONES, Environmental impact of Militarism, Funeral Procession of the victims, Drone Massacre Memorial, etc). We welcome suggestions for themes and offerings of help to make visuals & props. 

Creative and fun optional activities happen between the vigils and after dinner. They include informal walks in the beautiful desert, educational workshops by fellow "Creechers," visits to see the "wild horses," trips to local hot springs, visits to nearby nature preserves and more. If you have something special to offer during the action week, please let us know and we will contact you.

Let's make this SHUT DOWN CREECH spring action a very powerful stance against the brutality of covert U.S. drone killing. Please join us, and help spread the word.

CAMP JUSTICE 
Camp Justice is a Creecher community, and we depend on each other for its overall success. Please be prepared to take on some tasks that you are most comfortable with, through the week, to help us in our overall success. Together we are modeling a healthy peace community. We can’t wait to see you at Camp Justice! 

The Goddess Temple (also called "Temple of Goddess Spirituality") is located 3 miles north on highway 95, from where we vigil daily at Creech AFB. This welcoming refuge offers us shade trees, running water, showers, cooking facilities and much more. The Peace Pavilion provides a perfect outdoor meeting place, and our sacred "Goddess Temple to Sekhmet" offers a unique place to seek solace, healing, and meditation. 

The Guest House will still not be available for sleeping this spring due to the pandemic. More info: Camping, Guest House and other accommodation options

COVID SAFETY 

Due to the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will continue to take the necessary precautions to minimize health risks for everyone participating at Shut Down Creech. Both vaccinated and unvaccinated participants will be participating, as the organizers respect an individual's right to choose. Please Read our COVID guidelines, which we expect all participants to follow while at Shut Down Creech.

All activities will take place outdoors. We plan to wear face masks as needed, observe physical distancing, require tent or vehicle camping for overnight sleeping at Camp Justice and take other precautions to keep everyone safe. We will open the event to those who must fly or take other public transportation to Las Vegas to attend, but we ask those who fly to be extra diligent in abiding by safety precautions on route. We ask that all Creechers weigh the risks carefully, and assume full responsibility for their health.  For additional safety this time, we will require everyone to do a Covid rapid self-test upon arrival to the event, and again two days later.  These tests will be available at Shut Down Creech.

TRAVEL

We will offer assistance with transportation from/to Las Vegas/airport and bus terminal and to/from Camp Justice/Goddess Temple in a COVID safe manner. For further details please check the Housing & Transportation page, and await the final transportation form, which will be emailed to all registered participants.  All flight departures must take place by April 2nd if you want our assistance to the airport for your flight out of Las Vegas.

MEALS 

All meals will be provided at Camp Justice. We ask that you fill out the registration form so that we can get a headcount for meal preparation. Please also let us know of any dietary restrictions. We are asking for a donation of $10/day to help cover our food costs. Nobody will be turned away for inability to pay.  

#SHUTDOWNCREECH

REGISTER HERE

WHY DO WE PROTEST DRONE WARFARE?

We protest drone warfare to stand in solidarity with all people living under the terror of militarized drones and support their right to live under drone-free skies, without U.S. surveillance and drone attacks. We stand in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan, the most droned place on earth, and we stand in solidarity with the people of Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, and all other peoples and nations who have been subjected to or been threatened by the covert, unjust and deadly U.S. Killer Drone Assassination Program.

Thanks to excellent journalism, it has been revealed that there are over 900 drone pilots operating out of Creech Air Force Base. That means that there is a disturbing amount of remote murder on a daily basis happening at Creech alone. A recent military official reported in 2018 that over 80% of all U.S. air strikes involve U.S. drones, either for surveillance and targeting, and/or for direct strikes, and approximately 80% of all drone strikes go UNREPORTED. U.S. Drone attacks occur mostly away from any "battlefield," killing people as they are eating dinner in their homes, sleeping in their beds, driving their cars on the highway, worshiping in a mosque, attending wedding parties or funerals....living their lives.  

The vast majority of victims are unarmed civilians, including women and children, or "unintended targets."  This is unconscionable!  We give special thanks to Daniel Hale and all other drone whistleblowers who have taken great risks to expose the criminality and injustice of the U.S. Drone Program.  Daniel Hale is currently serving a 45 month sentence in a Federal Prison for acting out of conscience to inform the public.  Support Daniel Hale:  StandWithDanielHale.org

WHY WE PROTEST AT CREECH:

Since at least 2002, Creech Air Force Base secretly became the first U.S. base in the country to carry out illegal, remotely controlled assassinations using armed drones. Currently  the Reaper drones are the primary killer drones controlled from Creech to murder people with "hellfire missiles" in foreign lands, without due process. Creech drone personnel sit behind computers in the desert north of Las Vegas and kill "suspects" thousands of miles away. Most of the victims are "unintended targets" and unarmed civilians. One independent study indicated that the identity of only one out of 28 victims of U.S. drone strikes is known beforehand. Though officials deny it, the majority killed by drones are unknown, and many are civilians who happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.  THIS MUST STOP!  By participating in Shut Down Creech we become a united voice against this insanity and inhumanity. With organized nonviolent action we halt the criminal "business as usual" at Creech AFB for as long as we possibly can.   Sign the petition at BanKillerDrones.org

In 2014, it was leaked that the CIA's drone assassination program was not a separate operation from the Air Force's, but was instead piloted all along using Creech's super-secret 17th Attack Squadron. In November 2015, four Air Force drone veterans (3 of whom were based at Creech) wrote a public letter to President Obama, “We came to the realization that the innocent civilians we were killing only fueled the feelings of hatred that ignited terrorism and groups like ISIS, while also serving as a fundamental recruitment tool similar to Guantanamo Bay. This administration and its predecessors have built a drone program that is one of the most devastating driving forces for terrorism and destabilization around the world.”

Since 2009 dozens of anti-drone activists have been arrested for allegedly trespassing at Creech while peacefully interrupting  this indiscriminate killing by drones. We will continue our nonviolent resistance until this brutality ceases.

The US drone program is rapidly proliferating, as air bases have converted to drone bases across the U.S. and abroad, but Creech remains a key player in U.S. state-sponsored global terrorism. Creech is where the killer drone program started--it is where we shall end it.

• We must put an end to the desecration of our Mother Earth and all creatures who inhabit it.  War is toxic to the planet.
  
• We must put an end to the dehumanization of lives from Minneapolis to Afghanistan, Ferguson to Syria.  Militarized drones are racist tools.
  
• We must close all foreign U.S. military bases. Money should be prioritized for human needs, not war profiteering and global domination. 
• We must put an end to drone murder, drone surveillance and global militarization.  If the planet is to survive, we must also abolish all war.
  

We organize two Shut Down Creech weeklong anti-drone mobilizations every year, spring and fall.  We promote a bigger mobilization for our fall actions because the weather tends to be a bit more welcoming in the fall.  Springtime can be beautiful in the Nevada desert too, so please consider joining us for spring and/or fall. Encourage friends and family to join, helping to make our peace mobilizations a huge success.  

REGISTER NOW

   (Shut Down Creech, Creech AFB, Fall Action, 2020)