Activists For Freedom, Equity And Justice with Medea Benjamin & Kevin Danaher

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The Co-founders of Global Exchange point out reasons why the attack of September 11 served a U.S. political agenda that needed to justify a billion-dollar military budget. They shine a light on the lies the Bush administration told to justify the war in Iraq. And they reveal how Afghanistan has not benefited from our brutal attack or from our continued presence there, as our President would have us believe. Their work includes traveling around the planet to bring citizens face to face with the realities of life beyond our own communities and beyond our national borders. Their hope is to help us move beyond allegiance to our own flag to a compassionate allegiance to our planet. As Medea Benjamin says, "Patriotism is holding your nation to the highest standards possible. But we also have to evolve as human beings to a global consciousness." When we see the world from the point of view of these two visionaries, our own evolution becomes more attainable. (hosted by Michael Toms)

Bio

Medea Benjamin is the founding director of Global Exchange, dedicated to promoting environmental, political and social justice around the world. She is also cofounder of Code Pink: Women for Peace.

She is the author of several books including:

• The Peace Corps and More: 220 Ways to Work, Study, and Travel at Home and Abroad (Global Exchange 2003)

Kevin Danaher is cofounder of Global Exchange.

His most recent book is:

• Insurrection: Citizen Challenges and Corporate Power (coauthors Jason Dove Mark and Arianna Huffington) (Routledge 2003)

Topics Explored in This Dialogue

• How U.S. weapons have poisoned the Iraqi landscape for hundreds of generations to come
• How the war in Iraq has put Americans at home at greater risk than before
• The U.S. military's enticing recruiting message for low-income youth
• The hidden reasons we went to war in Iraq
• How you can continue to find joy when faced with the realities of war and suffering
• How you can help change U.S. foreign policy by supporting local, environmentally conscious businesses