By Richie
February 18, 2025

The Anti-War Action Network Founding Conference, held February 15–16, 2025, in St. Paul, Minnesota, brought together hundreds of activists from anti-war student groups, Palestine solidarity networks and seasoned campaigners to unite against U.S. imperialism and militarization. 

Attendees participated in dynamic panels such as “Palestine: Where Does Our Movement Need to Go?” “The Growing Divestment from Genocide Movement” and “Organizing Against War Profiteers,” where diverse organizations shared practical strategies — from local divestment campaigns and grassroots protest tactics to using research and social media for effective community mobilization. 

Interactive workshops provided hands-on training in street organizing and research methods while sessions on Syria and the broader Axis of Resistance highlighted the disabling impact of U.S. sanctions and military interventions on regional resistance movements. 

The conference culminated in a founding session that saw the adoption of a new mission statement, the election of a steering committee and the approval of resolutions to drive future national days of action, including observances for Land Day and Al‑Nakba, all underscored by networking opportunities that fostered further unity and strategic collaboration among the participants.

Here is the greeting delivered by Richie on behalf of the United National Antiwar Coalition. It is lightly edited.

I am honored to represent the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) here today. I proudly represent UNAC — a coalition that unites member organizations across the country including my own, the Bronx Anti-War Coalition (BXAW) and Workers World Party. Your unwavering dedication to resisting imperialism and war energizes our shared struggle for justice and peace.

Today, we confront brutal challenges that target our communities both at home and around the world. The U.S. settler-colonial regime is not a benign institution — it is a repressive imperial system built on capitalist exploitation and designed to instill fear, deepen division and secure power for the ruling class who profit from our suffering.

Deportation policies have long been a tool of oppression. For years, this repressive settler-colonial regime has used mass deportations against migrants, who are the victims of U.S. imperialist and interventionist policies in their own countries. These policies force people to flee oppressive conditions created directly by U.S. interventions abroad.

Many migrants are escaping nations disabled by sanctions or ruled by dictators and puppets installed by U.S. and Western regimes. Defending these migrants is not a crisis-dependent stance; it remains a core tenet of our organizing. We must acknowledge that the migrant crisis is a direct result of imperialism, and our struggle must reflect that reality.

Drastic reductions in health care programs, such as Medicaid and public education continue to undercut decades of hard-fought progress. These cuts shatter the support structures built by generations of working-class struggle. We must firmly support universal programs and reject any means-testing that forces individuals to prove their poverty, for essential services like health care and education are human rights, not privileges to be earned.

White supremacy is not confined to transient political rhetoric; it is a persistent and pervasive force. Non-white communities face its brutal realities every day through state-sanctioned police brutality, mass evictions, entrenched poverty and chronically under-resourced schools. We cannot choose to mobilize against white supremacy only under Republican presidents; combating this systemic violence must be an integral, everyday part of our work.

These repressive measures are part of a calculated strategy to instill panic and secure control in the hands of those who profit from division and fear. History teaches us that oppression only sharpens the resolve of the people. As our communities endure these relentless attacks, our response must be equally unyielding. It is imperative that we build our resistance block by block, starting right in our own neighborhoods.

We must get to know our neighbors and understand the challenges they face every day — challenges that are often directly tied to the destructive effects of war and imperialism. Our local struggles — whether with crumbling infrastructure, persistent poverty or under-resourced public services — are not isolated incidents; they are symptoms of a system that diverts our tax dollars from building community well-being and instead channels them into funding genocide and imperial aggression abroad.

Linking struggles at home and abroad

When we ground our activism in the lived experiences of our communities, we forge unbreakable bonds locally while laying the critical groundwork for international solidarity. Our local efforts are integrally linked to our global fight. From Palestine, Syria and Iran to the workers in our own cities, our movement spans geographies and unites our common struggles against capitalism and Western imperialism.

Make no mistake: there is only one empire in the world — the Western empire — with the United States at its head. The U.S., a settler-colonial entity founded in the exact same way as Israel, through the systematic genocide of Indigenous people, is actively committing genocide and dividing the globe into spheres of influence. It abhors any nation that resists becoming a vassal, and any state that defends its sovereignty and self-determination becomes the target of relentless U.S. imperial aggression.

If your organization is not yet part of UNAC, please find me, talk to me, and join us. We are militantly anti-imperialist and determined to build a national movement to support Indigenous resistance to imperialism.

Congratulations to the Anti-War Action Network on this founding conference. This conference is a vital opportunity to build a robust anti-imperialist wing of the peace movement. Let us share our experiences, forge enduring alliances and dismantle an oppressive system that thrives on war, exploitation and division.

Our adversaries, regardless of the labels they claim, have repeatedly demonstrated that they cannot defend the working class. They are all part of a repressive system built on capitalist imperial profit and the exploitation of our labor, lands and resources.

As we face the challenges ahead, let our unity resonate with one resounding call: “They say get back! We say fight back!” This is more than a slogan — it is the heartbeat of our ongoing struggle. Every day, in every action, we resist war, imperialism and the oppressive systems that prioritize profit over people.

Thank you for your tireless work and unwavering commitment. We look forward to deepening our dialogue, forging lasting alliances and strengthening the bonds of international solidarity as we build a future free from war, exploitation and systemic injustice.

In solidarity, forward together!