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Movement Wars and conflicts USA
By Scott Galindez
I spent three weeks in Crawford, Texas. The heat was
unbearable; bugs were everywhere, including fire ants
crawling into my keyboard. But I wouldn’t have traded
Camp Casey for any other story that I have ever
covered.
I remember the frigid cold of January in Washington DC,
when millions around the world said no to the war in
Iraq. We covered the Democratic and Republican
conventions, I went to Iowa and New Hampshire to cover
the primaries. These were all stories that I will not
forget, but what happened this August in Crawford,
Texas, was historic.
Twenty years from now, social studies classes will be
studying the impact that Cindy Sheehan, Camp Casey, and
the September 24th March on Washington had on George
Bush’s Iraq policy.
There were several moments in Crawford when I thought
to myself, "I am witnessing history." Cindy Sheehan was
the spark plug, and has emerged as a leader of the
anti-war movement. Other leaders also emerged at Camp
Casey; it is not that they were new to protesting the
war, but Cindy’s stand gave them the national stage
that they were unable to gain access to before.
I remember the first press conference that I attended,
Day 6 of the camp. Cindy opened with her emotional plea
for answers, and many other family members followed,
letting the world know that she was not alone.
I remember Bill Mitchell and Dante Zapalla in tears as
they placed flowers on their loved ones’ crosses. It
was the first day that the crosses from Arlington West
were set up at Camp Casey. Veterans for Peace had been
setting those crosses up for over a year - now they
were on the national stage.
I remember when Larry Northern mowed those crosses down
with his pickup truck. I was at the Crawford Peace
House, typing my blog report; Cindy was a few feet away
typing her daily blog post. The phone call came,
letting us know that the crosses had been mowed down. A
few minutes later, a volunteer sitting behind us
shouted "No!" At first we thought she was just learning
about the crosses, but she had just learned that her
pen pal was killed in Iraq. Cindy immediately comforted
her. Cindy Sheehan has an amazing gift for connecting
with people individually. Everywhere she goes now,
people want to meet her, and while others would
probably be uncomfortable, Cindy with a hug or a word
of encouragement connects with them all.
I remember the candlelight vigil the night that tens of
thousands of people around the country held vigils in
their communities. Aidan Delgado, a veteran of the war
in Iraq, gave an impassioned plea for us to make sure
that our military is never used again until all other
means have been exhausted.
I remember Hart Viges, another Iraq War vet, talking
about how hard it is for him to deal with the knowledge
that he killed people defending their homeland. And
Charlie Anderson speaking after learning that his wife
had left him. Cody Camacho explained that his own wife
left him because she didn’t recognize him when he
returned from Iraq.
Marine Jeff Key played taps at dusk every day, and one
night invited the counter protesters across the road to
join Camp Casey for a vigil honoring our fallen
soldiers. Jeff came back across the street carrying a
huge pole with the American flag on top, followed by
the counter protesters, who sang and vigiled with Camp
Casey.
Ann Wright, who, after decades in the military and
diplomatic corps resigned in protest of the Iraq war,
was the Camp Casey Commandant. Her leadership kept
things organized and from descending into chaos.
Beatriz Saldivar, Dante Zappala, Mimi Evans, Celeste
Zappala, Tamara Rosenleaf, and dozens of other family
members of fallen or deployed soldiers also emerged as
leaders of the anti-war movement.
Grammy Award-winning musician Steve Earle put it best:
"It wasn’t the fact that I opposed the Vietnam War that
stopped it ... It was when my father came to oppose the
war that it ended."
With Cindy, Beatriz, Ann, Dante, Mimi, Charlie, Jeff,
Aidan, Cody, Celeste, Tamara, and the thousands of
others who got their voice at Camp Casey leading the
way to Washington this week, more mothers and fathers
will begin to oppose this war.
On April 24, 1971, Vietnam Veterans Against the War
were among the leaders of 500,000 people who converged
on Washington to end the Vietnam War. On September 24,
2005, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Gold Star Families
for Peace, Military Families Speak Out, and Veterans
for Peace will be leading another huge march against
today’s war. As the call goes out far and wide to
gather in the nation’s capitol, history stands to be
made again.
Scott Galindez is the Managing Editor of truthout.org