[Peace-discussion] Empowers GI’s with Their Rights
Makers of Peace
makersofpeace@yahoo.com
Thu, 3 Jul 2008 23:18:38 -0700 (PDT)
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Peace Action Empowers GI=E2=80=99s with Their Rights
It was a hot day in late May when 30 Peace Action activists jumped in their=
cars and converged at Fort Dix, NJ. It was a diverse mix; high school stud=
ents and Vietnam veterans and everything in-between. This was just one of t=
he many outings for the women and men of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVA=
W) who facilitated the outreach trip.
Peace Action was represented by members of our national staff and members o=
f our chapter in Upper Hudson New Jersey. This was no ordinary peace missio=
n. GI outreach, especially on a base, is both emotionally and legally sensi=
tive; but, for the people gathered that day it is an essential aspect of ou=
r strategy to end the occupation.=20
Each of our 4 groups carried only the necessities: GI rights factsheet dott=
ed with references to military regulations which empower soldiers who want =
to speak out; a copy of the IVAW newsletter; and, an invitation to a BBQ. T=
here were no signs or t-shirts with catchy slogans; there was no media to c=
over our actions. We spread out near base to entryways, restaurants, and st=
ores looking for active duty soldiers. The mission was not to impress upon =
them our beliefs and vision for the world; our mission was to empower them =
to speak out about their own.
This type of GI outreach was a pivotal aspect of the successful opposition =
to the Vietnam War. By giving soldiers the tools to resist we empower a per=
spective sorely missing from the U.S. conversation about this war =E2=80=93=
the perspective of the soldiers who oppose it.=20
One such soldier is Matthis Chiroux who was honorably discharged from the A=
rmy in 2007 after five years of service, but he received orders in February=
2008 to return to active duty for deployment to Iraq.
On Sunday, June 15th, the day he was due to report for active duty, Matthis=
stood with his father and supporters in DC and reaffirmed that he is refus=
ing his orders on the grounds that the Iraq war is illegal and unconstituti=
onal.
Activists from all over the East Coast are joining this peace mission and t=
he plan is to have a weekly presence. If you would like to be involved in t=
his campaign please contact Peace Action.
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
Love and Light, wm and lynn McLean (a.k.a "dirt and trudge")
the Blueberry Peace Farm, Magee, MS, U.S.A.,=C2=A0EARTH=C2=A0
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/dirtandsludge=C2=A0 our "flog" (Farm Log)
http://members.aye.net/~hippie/real.htm
http://legitgov.com/
CITIZENS FOR LEGITAMATE GOVERNMENT
=0A=0A=0A
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<table cellspacing=3D'0' cellpadding=3D'0' border=3D'0' ><tr><td valign=3D'=
top' style=3D'font: inherit;'><P class=3Dtitleofpage align=3Dcenter><STRONG=
>Peace Action Empowers GI=E2=80=99s with Their Rights</STRONG></P>
<P class=3Dtext50th align=3Dleft><IMG height=3D143 src=3D"http://www.peace-=
action.org/pub/eNewsletter/june/listenin.jpg" width=3D214 align=3Dleft>It w=
as a hot day in late May when 30 Peace Action activists jumped in their car=
s and converged at Fort Dix, NJ. It was a diverse mix; high school students=
and Vietnam veterans and everything in-between. This was just one of the m=
any outings for the women and men of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) w=
ho facilitated the outreach trip.</P>
<P class=3Dtext50th>Peace Action was represented by members of our national=
staff and members of our chapter in Upper Hudson New Jersey. This was no o=
rdinary peace mission. GI outreach, especially on a base, is both emotional=
ly and legally sensitive; but, for the people gathered that day it is an es=
sential aspect of our strategy to end the occupation. </P>
<P class=3Dtext50th>Each of our 4 groups carried only the necessities: GI r=
ights factsheet dotted with <IMG height=3D157 src=3D"http://www.peace-actio=
n.org/pub/eNewsletter/june/outreach.JPG" width=3D236 align=3Dright>referenc=
es to military regulations which empower soldiers who want to speak out; a =
copy of the IVAW newsletter; and, an invitation to a BBQ. There were no sig=
ns or t-shirts with catchy slogans; there was no media to cover our actions=
. We spread out near base to entryways, restaurants, and stores looking for=
active duty soldiers. The mission was not to impress upon them our beliefs=
and vision for the world; our mission was to empower them to speak out abo=
ut their own.<BR><BR>This type of GI outreach was a pivotal aspect of the s=
uccessful opposition to the Vietnam War. By giving soldiers the tools to re=
sist we empower a perspective sorely missing from the U.S. conversation abo=
ut this war =E2=80=93 the perspective of the soldiers who oppose it. <BR><B=
R>One
such soldier is Matthis Chiroux who was honorably discharged from the Army=
in 2007 after five years of service, but he received orders in February 20=
08 to return to active duty for deployment to Iraq.<BR><BR><IMG height=3D15=
3 src=3D"http://www.peace-action.org/pub/eNewsletter/june/flyer.jpg" width=
=3D229 align=3Dleft>On Sunday, June 15th, the day he was due to report for =
active duty, Matthis stood with his father and supporters in DC and reaffir=
med that he is refusing his orders on the grounds that the Iraq war is ille=
gal and unconstitutional.<BR>Activists from all over the East Coast are joi=
ning this peace mission and the plan is to have a weekly presence. If you w=
ould like to be involved in this campaign please contact <A href=3D"mailto:=
jwilliams@peace-action.org">Peace Action</A>.</P>
<P><BR> </P>
<P><BR> </P>
<DIV>Love and Light, wm and lynn McLean (a.k.a "dirt and trudge")</DIV>
<DIV>the Blueberry Peace Farm, Magee, MS, U.S.A., EARTH </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>
<DIV></FONT><A href=3D"http://blog.360.yahoo.com/dirtandsludge" target=3D_b=
lank rel=3Dnofollow>http://blog.360.yahoo.com/dirtandsludge</A> our "=
flog" (Farm Log)</DIV>
<DIV><A href=3D"http://members.aye.net/~hippie/real.htm" target=3D_blank re=
l=3Dnofollow>http://members.aye.net/~hippie/real.htm</A></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV><A href=3D"http://legitgov.com/" target=3D_blank rel=3Dnofollow>http:/=
/legitgov.com/</A></DIV>
<DIV>CITIZENS FOR LEGITAMATE GOVERNMENT</DIV>
<DIV><IMG id=3DfullSizedImage alt=3D"untitled1.jpg picture by cpeacesigns" =
src=3D"http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g35/cpeacesigns/untitled1.jpg?t=3D=
1215152218"></DIV></DIV></DIV></td></tr></table><br>=0A=0A
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