Thirty high-profile national peace, labour, students, religious, women, environmental, cultural and community groups formed a national coalition to oppose Canada's participation in military retaliation and to speak out against racist attacks resulting from the September 11 terrorists attacks on the United States.

The September Eleventh Peace Coalition includes large diverse groups such as the Canadian Labour Congress, End the Arms Race, The Council of Canadians, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Science for Peace, The Canadian Peace Alliance, The Canadian Federation of Students, Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), and many others.

The September Eleventh Peace Coalition statement makes the plea for peace and respect for international law. It reads, "We have come together to plead for a resolution of the present chaos and horror through the framework of law and the equality of people and not the framework of war and racism."

"We mourn the tragic deaths of the people killed in the September 11 terrorist attacks and believe the perpetrators of those crimes must be dealt with under national and international laws. We also call on Canadians to demonstrate respect and tolerance and not to blame any particular cultural or religious groups for such offensive acts," said Jean-Claude Parrot, Vice President of the Canadian Labour Congress.

"Military retaliation will only cause more grief and suffering for innocent people around the world. We believe Canada can lead the way to build a more just and democratic world that helps create stronger international security for all of us," said Peter Coombes, National Organizer for End the Arms Race.

The September Eleventh Peace Coalition will be organizing a cross-Canada campaign to oppose military retaliation. Coalition members said that there are many Canadians across the country who want to do whatever they can to oppose Canada's involvement in war and to promote peace.

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September Eleventh Peace Coalition

We are the September 11 Peace Coalition, formed in the aftermath of the terrible terrorist attacks on the United States. We are building a coalition of peace, faith, women's, labour, community, environmental, student, youth and cultural groups from across Canada.

We feel great sympathy for the victims of the terrorist attacks, their families and their communities. We grieve deeply the loss of human life.

We have come together to plead for a resolution of the present chaos and horror through the framework of law and the equality of people and not the framework of war and racism. We oppose war as immoral and counter-productive. We work for peace and global social justice.

We do not believe that military retaliation will offer justice to those who perished and we fear it may perpetuate a cycle of violence that began long before September 11 and must not be allowed to go on indefinitely.

We utterly abhor the acts of terror of September 11. The perpetrators must be brought to justice through the rules of national and international law.

We likewise abhor indiscriminate military assaults that inflict injuries and cause suffering, death, and the displacement of people. We call on the Government of Canada to say an unambiguous No to the bombing or invasion of any country.

We are deeply concerned about the racism that has become more prevalent in Canada in the aftermath of September 11. We call for the prosecution of those who engage in racist attacks and a halt to all racist rhetoric.

There are many steps that can and should be taken to help curtail further terror and insecurity, including the strengthening of the rule of international law, reducing disparities between the rich and the poor and men and women, building democracy, replacing the global war economy and ending the arms trade.

We mourn for the global victims of terror and ask for wisdom, compassion and tolerance to prevail. Our planet is fragile. It cannot indefinitely survive the abuses of war and poverty. It is time for people to stand together to restore our humanity and protect our planet and all its peoples.