Photos of the Blackwater Protest at Moyock, NC

A hardy coalition of peace and justice activists took on Blackwater USA Saturday, Oct 20, 2007 at their world headquarters, outraged by a long history of bloody incidents in Iraq and Afghanistan and culminating in the Nisour Square massacre in Baghdad on Sept 16. I posted a news item a few days ago on Mosquito Blog which you can check out later for more information.

Meanwhile, independent photographer Joe Filipowski sent me a CD full of photos of the Blackwater Protest in Moyock last Saturday, with the request that I get them out to the public, so I have been doing that. I took some 80 plus of his best photos and loaded them on my Kodak Gallery space for everyone's perusal, but I thought I would show you a few of them here at Mosquito Blog to twik your interest. You can follow them up via the link to the rest of the photos at the bottom of this post.

To briefly summarize, there were protesters outside of the Blackwater entrance along both sides of the roadway and bleeding onto a nearby city street. There was a guerilla theater partial reenactment of the Nisour Square massacre, and there were seven arrests of activists who quietly chose to practice civil disobedience. The police were pretty cool about this and the whole event went off very successfully.

There was local and Virginia coverage of the protest, with some independent media types joining in, or protesters simply being their own media journalists and photographers. The message got out that there is very vocal resistance on both coasts now to Blackwater's martial ambitions and violence.





























You can see the rest of Joe's photos by clicking here . You don't have to sign in, just go to "view slideshow".

It is hoped that this protest will serve as an inspiration to others who are challenging the government/corporate war machine that is devastating humanity and the planet.

Protest at Blackwater's Moyock Headquarters Last Saturday

On Saturday a coalition of peace and justice activists bearded the wolf in his lair, staging a protest and guerrilla theater right outside the corporate gates at Moyock, North Carolina. Seven activists engaged in civil diobedience and were arrested. Blackwater has been put on notice from coast to coast now that Americans don't want a modern Murder, Incorporated International being enshrined in our country.











An anti-Blackwater Protester Outside Blackwater's World Headquarters (Source: WNCT, Channel 9 in Greenville, NC. Check out their coverage too, with news video, by clicking here )

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There have been several local reports of Saturday's protest, although I don't think the national media picked it up. What else is new?

But the excellent reporter for The Virginian Pilot, Bill Sizemore, did however write a news report with five great photographs by Chris Curry of the Pilot as well. Below is an excerpt of the article. You can read the entire article by clicking here and note when you do that the photos are a series of five that you can activate.

Sizemore has also written a terrific report on Blackwater which you can access by clicking here.

Photos: Seven protesters arrested at Blackwater's headquarters
The Virginian-Pilot
© October 21, 2007
Last updated: 7:05 PM

Special Report: Inside America's Private Army

By BILL SIZEMORE, The Virginian-Pilot

MOYOCK, N.C.

Seven people were arrested Saturday at Blackwater Worldwide’s front entrance after protesters re-enacted the Sept. 16 shooting incident in Baghdad involving Blackwater contractors in which 17 Iraqis died.

It was the first protest at the 10-year-old private military company’s headquarters, a reflection of its heightened profile since the Baghdad shootings stirred Iraqi anger and created a diplomatic crisis for Blackwater’s client, the U.S. State Department.

The protesters drove a small gray station wagon, covered with simulated bullet holes and smeared with red paint, onto Blackwater’s property. One lay back in the driver’s seat and five others got out and lay on the ground, as if they had been shot.

The scene was intended to mimic that in Baghdad’s Nisour Square, where an Iraqi doctor and her son died in a fusillade of gunfire as their car approached a Blackwater diplomatic convoy......

Currituck County sheriff’s deputies, called to the scene by Blackwater guards, told the protesters they were on private property and asked them to leave. When they didn’t respond, they were handcuffed and placed in a sheriff’s van. Some went limp and had to be dragged.

A crowd of about 50 more protesters who had gathered along the adjacent public road cheered as the seven were driven away. The group carried signs with slogans such as “Bring Blackwater to Justice,” “Security Contractors are Unlawful Combatants” and “Blackwater: Shoot First, Ask No Questions.”......

The protest was organized by the Norfolk Catholic Worker and Blackwater Watch, an activist group based in Durham, N.C.

Christian Stalberg, a spokesman for Blackwater Watch, said the group’s aim is to “shut down Blackwater.”

“It’s an unmitigated disaster,” he said. “They’re irresponsible and totally unaccountable.”

DeMott, who described himself as a Vietnam War veteran, said he was willing to risk arrest because “not to raise my voice would be to tacitly condone Blackwater and its murderous activities.” ......................