Admiral Hosley, be on the right side of history! Add your name!

Dear John,

“A time comes when silence is betrayal.” 

— Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Beyond Vietnam,” 1967

The United States is not just edging toward war in Latin America, it is rewriting the rules of war itself. The Trump administration is claiming that people on boats in the Caribbean can be killed without evidence, due process, or Congressional authorization simply by labeling them “drug traffickers” or “enemy combatants.” This legal logic is not only false, it is terrifying. It means that if the government labels any group a “transnational criminal organization,” it can justify military strikes without war powers, without oversight, and without geographic limits. If tomorrow they claim there is a “Tren de Aragua cell” in New York, Miami, or Chicago, this doctrine would allow them to bomb the building.

At the center of this crisis is Admiral Alvin Holsey, the commander of U.S. Southern Command, the top military officer overseeing all U.S. operations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Holsey is stepping down in the middle of one of the most dangerous escalations our hemisphere has seen in decades. As the commander overseeing these operations, he knows exactly what is happening behind closed doors. He is the one person whose testimony could break through the wall of secrecy. If he speaks publicly, Congress cannot ignore him.

Sign the petition urging Admiral Holsey to speak out before this becomes the new normal.

The administration is quietly relying on a twisted reinterpretation of laws meant for war zones:

• “Drug traffickers” become “enemy combatants”: By labeling civilians on fishing boats as “combatants,” the administration claims it can kill them under wartime authorities even though Congress has not authorized any war in Latin America.
  
• The “War on Drugs” becomes a global battlefield: This logic revives the worst Bush-era justifications: If the U.S. declares that the Caribbean is a battlefield, then it pretends wartime rules apply.
  
• The President can order killings without due process. Trump said it openly: “We’re just going to kill people.”
  
• CIA covert action becomes the perfect loophole for impunity: Reports say the CIA has been authorized for land strikes inside Latin America. CIA actions operate under the flimsiest oversight meaning—evidence, legality, and public transparency vanish.

This logic is a blank check for endless war. If the government can kill without evidence in the Caribbean, it can kill without evidence anywhere.

SOUTHCOM itself reportedly raised concerns that these operations were not lawful. Admiral Holsey even offered to resign after being pressured to green-light questionable strikes — something virtually unheard of from a sitting combatant commander. It means something is deeply wrong, and he knows it.

Add your name: Ask Admiral Holsey to speak out before it’s too late.

This is the moment he must speak out. Congress has not authorized a war in the Caribbean, the majority of Americans oppose military intervention in Venezuela, and yet the largest aircraft carrier on Earth is steaming toward Latin America. At the same time, CIA covert action is expanding, and the legal justification being crafted today could be used anywhere tomorrow. If we don’t stop this now, the precedent will be permanent. 

 👉 Here are more ways to engage:

• Join the Rapid Response Team for Venezuela
  
• Latin America: Anti-Imperialist Campaign Action Series Resource Guide 
• "Regime change” in Venezuela is a euphemism for U.S.-inflicted carnage and chaos 
• Propaganda at its worst 
• Demand 60 Minutes Stop Stoking War!
• Episode 323: Monroe Doctrine 2.0: Washington’s War on Latin America 
• The Oldest Colony, the Newest War: Puerto Rico as a Launchpad for War on Venezuela

In Radical Solidarity,
Medea, Michelle, Teri and the entire CODEPINK team

P.S. All giving Tuesday donations are being matched by a generous donor. Support our work for peace and justice in Latin America and double your impact!