Congrats to all, especially Carol Baum, Ann Tiffany and Andy Mager on the success of the Syracuse Peace Council info-tabling inside Carousel Mall.
About 700 signed the Iraq Peace Pledge at the info-tabling on Dec. 15. I hope that other small groups can also use the $1 million liability insurance coverage provided by the Am. Friends Service Cmte. Quakers and conduct info-tabling in the Carousel Mall and other malls owned by Pyramid Co. in Ithaca, Binghamton, Rochester, Buffalo, Albany, Watertown, Westchester, et al.
From the Syracuse New Times--
Carousel gives Peace a Chance
A looming, three-level mosh pit filled with harried people employing the Vulcan death grip in order to snag the last Chicken Dance Elmo describes the typical shopping scene at Carousel Center. But on Dec. 15, the mall experienced a daylong attitude adjustment. The Syracuse Peace Council set up shop in the lower level from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., handing out information, selling buttons and stickers, encouraging passers-by to sign a petition against war in Iraq and giving a name and face to a peace movement that grows with every announcement by el Presidente Bush about wrasslin' up Saddam. What makes the SPC's appearance so significant is the fact that it's the first time they've ventured inside the glass facade.
"The Peace Council had never formally applied to them before. They require $1 million in liability insurance, which is significant for grass-roots organizations," explained SPC co-coordinator Andy Mager. The council usually takes to the streets to get the word out. "Most of what we do is outside vigils. We certainly get a response, but we don't have much of a chance to interact."
For their freshman foray indoors, they teamed up with the American Friends Service Committee, an international Quaker organization based in Philadelphia; AFSC has a branch in the area and already has insurance that meets the $1 million minimum. Meeting insurance liability minimums is a constant challenge for nonprofit organizations, and Mager said the SPC's current insurer will not even cover them for much more than their current $200,000 in liability. Even if they could find a local company to do it, the premiums would quadruple to at least $5,000, which is what keeps all but the most well-funded opinions out of the places where crowds flock.
Mager added that the council originally tried to contact the city of Syracuse's legal department for help getting the cool mil, but were told nothing could be done, adding that when they contacted mall management, "Carousel expressed no flexibility about the issue."
"It's a fairly general liability umbrella," explained Rose Hapanowich, director of marketing at Carousel Center. She said the mall's insurance company will not endorse groups entering the property unless they meet the minimum coverage requirement. Once the insurance requirement is met, Carousel reviews groups on a first-come, first-served basis. "We review what they are trying to collect money for, we ask that we see {the information they want to present} in advance, and we reserve the right to turn them down," she said.
The one thing groups cannot do is actively solicit money from passers-by, and can only engage patrons in discussion or requests for money if the patron comes to the table of his or her own volition. "If people choose to come see what it's all about, that's their prerogative," she added.
"I certainly felt a lot of support, much less than negative comments," said Ann Tiffany, a member of the SPC's steering committee who was at the booth on Dec. 15. "Most people will walk by and turn their heads rather than make a negative comment," she said, adding, "It was not radical. It was simply presenting a different perspective."
Considering the daily deluge of war talk, the purchase of a $1.5 billion anti-ballistic missile system, and weapons-of-mass-destruction rhetoric billowing from the Oval Office, that different perspective may be gaining in popularity. A main feature at the table was the Iraq Peace Pledge, a list of signatures of people opposed to war in Iraq that nearly 700 people signed that day. The other event the group was taking names for is a Jan. 18, 2003, bus trip to Washington, D.C., for a national march against war in Iraq. The SPC currently has two buses reserved, but is hoping to add more.
"In the early 1980s, during the Gulf War, we were very active," said Tiffany, who's been a member of the council for two decades. "We had a number of street demonstrations, we made phone calls, sent letters, but I think that this time it's even more active. I think 9-11 was a wake-up call, and we see things in a very different light than President Bush. It really revitalized the activist community." She said an example of the renewed interest in speaking out is the rally the Peace Council held in Armory Square in October to protest the impending war in Iraq: More than 1,000 area residents participated. "That's never happened since I've been involved."
The SPC has scheduled a repeat appearance at Carousel Center, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information about finding peace in our part of the earth and beyond, or to get involved, visit www.peacecouncil.net or www.endthewar.org.
--Erica S. Brath
