N E W S R E L E A S E
DATE: January 3, 2008
RELEASE: Immediately
CONTACT: Mona Shaw
SODaPOP
Iowa Occupation Project
Des Moines Catholic Worker
Des Moines, IA
319-621-4646
CLINTON OCCUPATION INCLUDES FIERCE STAND-OFF BUT NO ARRESTS
Twenty-five members of SODaPOP appeared at Sen. Hillary Clinton’s Campaign Headquarters this afternoon with the intention of occupying that office until the senator agreed to pledge to bring an immediate end to the war in Iraq and to veto further funding of that war if she is elected president.
When Clinton staff saw SODaPOP members approaching their office, the door to the building was locked and entrance was barred to all SODaPOP members as well as press who had arrived to cover the occupation.
SODaPOP then stood in front of the entrances holding banners that read “End the War in Iraq” and “Stop War Funding” and handed out flyers outlining their reasons for being there. After several hours and when the headquarters were closing to leave for precinct caucuses, SODaPOP members decided to leave. No arrests were made.
Photos of this action taken by Mauro Heck may be viewed and down-loaded at: [www.flickr.com](http://www.flickr.com/photos/monashaw/sets/72157603627460627/show
This concluded the three-day campaign in Iowa. A total of 15 arrests were made in the campaign that also included occupations at the Huckabee, Romney, and Obama campaign headquarters in the Des Moines metro area. SODaPOP (Seasons of Discontent: a Presidential Occupation Project) is a project that intends to insert the peace movement into the U.S. presidential campaigns. It is coordinated by Voices for Creative Nonviolence, the Iowa Occupation Project and hosted in Des Moines by the Des Moines Catholic Worker Community.
In a news release issued earlier by the Des Moines Catholic Worker, Kelly, co-director of VCNV, was quoted as saying, “We’re very respectful of the Iowa caucus process and the long history behind it but we feel quite strongly that the issues of this war must be inserted into the process of narrowing down the candidates for the presidential election.”
More information about SODaPOP is available at the following websites.
