Bring Our Children Home Now

Bring Our Children Home Now

Nancy Lessin, AlterNet September 22, 2003 Viewed on September 22, 2003

Editor’s Note: Nancy Lessin, the co-founder of Military Families Speak
Out, a rapidly growing antiwar group organized by family members of
soldiers posted in Iraq, gave the following speech at a congressional
hearing organized by Congresswoman Maxine Waters on Sept. 9.
We want to thank congresswoman Maxine Waters for giving us this very
special opportunity to bring our message to members of Congress. And
thank you to Congressman Conyers and Congressman McDermott as well.

My name is Nancy Lessin, and I am a co-founder of Military Families
Speak Out. We formed this organization last November, 2002 with two
families speaking out against what we saw as an illegal and immoral
invasion of Iraq. In our case, my stepson Joe, a Marine, deployed in
August, 2002 and my husband and I we jolted by those drumbeats of war.

Leaders in Washington, D.C. were saying, "We’ve got to go to war!" But
they weren’t going anywhere — nor were their loved ones. Our loved
ones, however, were being put in harm’s way, and try as we might, we did
not see that this was for any good reason.

We were not convinced that the mysterious weapons of mass destruction,
supposedly hidden somewhere in Iraq, were imminent threats to this
country. We never saw a link between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda. We
could not see how invading Iraq would address the terrible tragedy of
Sept. 11th or solve the problem of terrorism.

We could not help believing that if the greatest natural resource in
Iraq was olive oil, the leaders of this country would not have been
talking about launching a virtually unilateral, preemptive war of
aggression against another sovereign nation. The sign my husband and I
made one year ago this month had Joe’s picture on it, and it said, "Our
son is a Marine — Don’t send him to war for oil!"

Much has happened since the fall of 2002.

An invasion of Iraq in March has turned into a military occupation.
Hundreds of troops and untold thousands of Iraqis have died. We don’t
have an accurate picture, but we know there has been untold damage from
injuries, illnesses, psychological trauma and suicides

Our organization has grown, from two families in November to 600 in
July, 2003. And last month, together with Veterans for Peace and other
veterans groups, we launched the "Bring Them Home NOW!" campaign. We’re
working our way through 6,000 emails that we have received since then,
and we estimate that our membership is now between 800 and 1,000
military families, and growing every day.

Members of Military Families Speak Out are here today to speak of the
betrayal that we have experienced; that our loved ones have experienced;
that this nation has experienced. Our loved ones took an oath to defend
this country and our Constitution from all enemies, foreign and
domestic. But there is a commitment our government makes to our troops
in return: that it will not send our young men and women in uniform into
reckless misadventures that put them at risk needlessly.

This is the part of the bargain that has been broken.

Yes, war is hell; but this is something else, and our loved ones and all
our troops have been betrayed. We were all betrayed by this
administration when it cited a litany of reasons for invading Iraq that
shifted like desert sands and seemed to be based upon quicksand. We were
betrayed by an administration that went against the international
community and called millions of protesters a "focus group."

We were betrayed by a lack of planning — active military and their
families are now dealing with back-to-back two year deployments,
announced a few weeks ago. And today National Guard and reservists and
their families are reeling from the news about their tours of duty being
extended. And yes, there is a problem with troops being short on water,
short on food, short on supplies and short on equipment. This morning we
received an email from a mother whose son is in Iraq. The email read:
"Our soldiers have been killed because there were not enough Kevlar
vests to go around. One of my son’s friends was shot in the back in
Fallujah and two of his platoon members were killed in an ambush in May
because they only had 30 vests for 120 men. No one at his checkpoint had
a vest, thus nine people were injured."

We’re betrayed by a President who on May 1st landed on a photogenic
aircraft carrier decked out with a massive sign reading "Mission
Accomplished" — and more of our troops have died since then than during
so-called "major combat." We’re betrayed by an administration that
allows our loved ones to be occupiers, securing safety for Halliburton
and Bechtel to reap billions.

We’re betrayed by an administration that sought to cut combat pay as our
president was saying (from his safe and secure and guarded location in
Washington, D.C.), "Bring ’em on!" to the armed Iraqi resistance.
We’re betrayed by an administration that supports cuts in already
inadequate veterans’ benefits, ignoring the fact that when and if our
loved ones come home, they will be neither safe nor sound — physical
and psychological damage will put them at risk for decades to come.

As the Veterans for Peace cadence goes, "They wave the flag when you
attack; When you come home, they turn their back."
We were betrayed Sunday night when President Bush began his PR campaign
to secure 87 billion new dollars for the U.S. military occupation. These
dollars — especially the $61 billion earmarked for the military
occupation — will not benefit our troops, the people of this country or
the people of Iraq.

As long as we are telling these uncomfortable truths, we will share one
more betrayal.
We were betrayed last October when Congress turned over to the president
a power given to Congress and Congress alone by our Constitution — the
power to declare war.

But even given all of this, we understand the opportunity that now faces
this nation, and this Congress, to turn things around.
For some of our families — unfortunately a growing number — our Bring
Them Home NOW campaign, and anything you might do in Congress, is too
late. Their loved ones will never be coming home; they have already paid
the ultimate price. But the voices of these families are strong through
their tears. I would like to read the statement of Jane Bright :
"My son, Sgt. Evan Ashcraft, was killed July 24, 2003 at 2:30 in the
morning on a lonely road near Mosul, Iraq. He was 24 years old. He died
alone, no family nearby, no one to hold his hand or pray over him as he
left this world.

Evan was a gifted student, musician and athlete. He started college
courses in mathematics and computer science when he was 13 years old. He
played classical piano. He had hopes and dreams. He and his soul mate,
Ashley, had big plans. Evan planned to get his college degree after he
left the Army. Evan and Ashley had been married 3 years. Evan was one of
the best and the brightest. He was a leader, his team loved him and he
them.

The young men and women who are dying in Iraq are our future generation
of leaders. They are the future of America. They represent the best that
America has to offer. Those who survive Iraq will undoubtedly face years
of anguish over what they have witnessed in this immoral war, all in the
name of oil. In the meantime we, the American public, sit by, mute, as
we watch our young die. We must halt this unconscionable action in Iraq
immediately and bring our young people home.

It’s too late for my son, but it’s not too late for the many tens of
thousands still in Iraq. Bring them home now!"
Jane Bright Mother of Sgt. Evan Ashcraft, Deceased
For tens of thousands of others — we hope it is not too late. We ask
that members of Congress listen to what these families have to say here
today.

And we ask something else: We ask that you take the time today, or
tomorrow or the next day, to step out into this nation’s front yard.
Visit the Black Wall — the Vietnam Memorial. And listen with your
hearts. Reflect on the more than 58,000 names on that wall.

If there is a legacy for these dear, departed souls — it is now. This
is the time. This is the moment. And you, our Members of Congress, are
the people. Turn this around — and Bring Them Home NOW!

(c) 2003 Independent Media Institute. All rights reserved.