Arrest that war criminal! - Rovics

national | anti-war / imperialism | news report Monday June 21, 2004 17:46 by William Hederman williamhederman at hotmail dot com +353 87 2861238

US singer/activist is here to serenade his president

“Ask any child in Latin America what the difference is between German fascism in the 1930s and US fascism today, and they’ll tell you: they were never invaded by Germany.” American singer and activist David Rovics was characteristically uncompromising when he arrived in Dublin today for a short Irish tour which begins tonight (Monday) at the Cobblestone in Dublin.

“Any politicians who do not attempt to arrest this war criminal [George Bush] are failing to implement international law. There are plenty of grounds for arresting him.”

“You will have a war criminal on your soil next weekend – the worst on the planet in the past half century, possibly the worst in the history of the planet, in terms of sheer power and of the suppression of democratic impulses and in its support of the policies of the World Bank and IMF which imiserate people across the world.

“US foreign policy is genocidal; US environmental policy is going to cause an environmental holocaust. Ireland will be underwater.”

Rovics is dubbing his Irish dates a ‘Serenading Bush’ tour because of the impending arrival of his president on Friday. “As a fellow American, I want to give him a little support,” David announces. “I’m such a big admirer, I want to follow him around, sing him love songs, tell him about how the people in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere love him. Because, you know, people like to be bombed.”

But seriously, to what extent are anti-government sentiments growing in the United States?

“A majority of people in the United States ARE cynical about whoever’s in power. And a majority despise George Bush. Most Americans are good people. They just don’t get enough information from the mainstream media.

“When you go out in city centres, you find people are informed, there’s more communication, people talk to each other, there’s more community media. But a lot of Americans live in the suburbs. Those suburbs are like nothing you have in Ireland. People don’t know their neighbours. It’s impossible to walk or ride a bicycle, you have to drive.

“If they’re not out in your car, they’re at home watching their televisions. They get their news from CNN and so they think everyone else is pro-Bush and so they feel they’d better be too.

'WHERE CAN I GET THAT T-SHIRT?'

Rovics tells of his personal experience of strong anti-Bush feelings in the US. He has a t-shirt bearing the slogan, “George Bush: international terrorist”, which he says he wears all the time when in the US and which meets with a mostly positive response. “Negative comments come only from white people and almost always men. Even military guys like the t-shirt.”

“At airports, all the workers I meet want to know how they can get a copy. Only the white guys in suits object, but they’re not going to start a fight: they have to think about the dental bills.

“I feel very safe wearing it in cities like Washington DC where there’s a large black population. I feel like a celebrity: they’ve never heard my music, they just love the t-shirt.”

But what about the extreme patriotism and the predominance of American flags we hear about?

“What’s behind the flags and all that is fear of the government, the fear that if you don’t join the club, you’ll be singled out and ostracised. While a small minority of people will speak the truth, most people in the US only speak out if their neighbours are speaking out.”

RUMBLINGS IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST

But Rovics is upbeat about the growing anti-war movement in his country: “In the past two years people who had never protested before – or at least not since the 1960s – have come out on protests. Even in little towns people have been coming out.

“We don’t have the mass movement we need but there is an anti-Bush sentiment growing.”

So where does he hope this movement’s growth will be critical, in the US or elsewhere?

“You know, people tend to say that Seattle in 1999 was the start of a global movement; that’s sad, because people had been protesting [against global capitalism] for years before that in developing countries.

“But when things do happen in the belly of the beast, that’s inspiring. The US is the empire that needs to be stopped. The impetus must come from within. However, people should do anything they can to isolate the United States.”

SERENADING BUSH TOUR:
* Mon 21 June: Cobblestone, Dublin; Support by Mark Malone. Doors 8.30pm. Euro 10
* Tues 22 June: An Cruiscin Lan, Cork; DJ afterwards. Doors 8pm Euro 10pm
* Wed 23 June: To be confirmed

[Half of proceeds go to Irish Grassroots networks]