Please call or write your representatives asking them to sign on to
this letter calling for closure of the SOA. Each representative has
had a copy of the Oscar-nominated documentary "School of Assassins"
delivered to their offices on Friday, March 10th. Please bring this to their
attention when writing or calling. IT WILL ONLY TAKE THEM 20 MINUTE
TO BECOME INFORMED!
REMEMBER!
Training provided to nearly 2000 School of the Americas trainees each
year is paid for with US tax revenues through the INTERNATIONAL
MILITARY EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAM (IMET) AND FOREIGN MILITARY
SALES (FMS). School officials claim that the SOA costs taxpayers
only $4 million per year....their operating budget not including
salaries. However, this does not include: 1) over $30 million spent on
renovations. 2) SOA Trainees recreational activities include free trips to
Disney World , visits to Coca-Cola headquarters and outings to
various other regional attractions.....at the expense of US
taxpayers. 3) Award ceremonies are held at the SOA to honor
high-ranking alumni; and "outstanding" alumni are invited to the
school as guest speakers. Our tax dollars have paid travel expenses
and honoraria for some of the most corrupt and brutal military and
political figures of Latin America. General Hugo Banzer of Bolivia
and General Hector Gramajo of Guatemala are two such criminales who
have received honors and accolades at the SOA -- in spite of the
inhumanity that characterizes their military and political records.
Maryann Bell
Assistant Dean
Social & Behavioral Sciences
Melville Library - 2nd fl.
University at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY 11794-3391
Phone: 516-632-6190
FAX: 516-632-6900
E-Mail: mabell@provos2.prov.sunysb.edu