Wednesday's protest at Senator Bob Corker's downtown office provided an opportunity to display MSPJC's mettle and its committment toward nonviolent action. While five people lay on cold wet concrete outside Peabody Towers (Jessica "JB" Buttermore, Shawna Graves Wheeler, Billy Vaughn, Pete Gathje, and George Gride), a group of supporters worked to keep the dead feeling useful.

Meanwhile, Jacob Flowers and Ceylon Mooney joined with the senator's staff on the thirteenth floor, reading off the names of the Iraqi and American dead. Police arrived to arrest those on the sidewalk, but were called off by Senator Corker's people after a meeting was being arranged with Corker's field representative, Nick Kistenmacher, who was currently out of the office.

The meeting with Kistenmacher showed no promise, so we all moved upstairs and joined in with the reading. Twenty-two protestors crowded the reception room. Jacob and Janice Vanderhaar continued the dialog: that we were serious about our demand that Senator Corker commit to holding a town meeting in Memphis. No such meeting has ever been held. But to no avail. The following were handcuffed and taken to 201 Poplar: Jacob Flowers, Ceylon Mooney, Jessica "JB" Buttermore, Kathleen Kruzek, Peter Gathje, Dennis Paden, and George Grider. The charge was criminal trespassing.

Seven Memphians were arrested in Senator Corker's office asking for nothing more than accountability from our representative. All charges have been dropped against the Memphis Seven. The Senator refused to commit to a Town Hall meeting. That doesn't mean that we have given up on him coming to Memphis and listening to the people he represents. Call his Memphis and DC offices and ask him, "When is the Town Hall meeting in Memphis?"

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