Iraq Veterans Tour Embark on New Mission (Part 2)

Recognizing that GI resistance is crucial to their struggle to end the war,, Iraq Veterans Against the War embarked on Saturday on a bus tour designed to recruit active duty members for IVAW membership and educate the general public about what these war veterans experienced themselves in Iraq. The tour is scheduled through the southern Atlantic states with stops in several cities that have military installations.
Speaking during a cook out in a park in Maryland to kick off the tour, IVAW Chairman, Garett Reppenhagen said, "We need our politicians to know that the way they are voting today is going to effect their elections tomorrow and that we're keeping a scoreboard, we're keeping a tally and we're keeping a watch. They better start representing Americans, because a majority of Americans want the troops home now, a majority of Iraqis want the occupation gone from their country and a majority of soldiers don't want to fight this war. So we fail to have a representative government that truly reflects the will of the people. That's a problem and that's one of the reasons I'm speaking out."
Fellow veteran and IVAW co-founder, Kelly Dougherty said, "[In] my personal experience I was opposed to the war before it started. I was actually serving as a medic in a medical unit and in January of 2003, a couple of months before the war started I was informed that I had been involuntarily transfered to a military police unit, my job had been changed from medic to military police, I was to report the following day and they were being deployed. For me of course that was a shock and that was unexpected, but when I got to the unit and saw people that I had known before, from being in the National Guard at that point for 7 years, I really felt like there weren't a lot of options but to go. And that's how I found myself in Iraq."
Standing not too far away was a veteran of the Iraq war from Binghampton, N.Y. who had been honorably discharged as a conscientious objector after serving a tour of duty 40 miles west of Baghdad. When asked if there was anything he'd like to add about his service, he said, "I had a friend who was an IVAW member who was vehemently opposed to the war. We served together on our first tour of Iraq. He had to go back for a second tour. He was killed in Taji, Iraq, last February. So I just want people to know that there is a member of Iraq Veterans Against War, an organization that's solidly opposed to the war, who was killed in Iraq. So when people say they're supporting the war because soldiers support it, they don't represent the viewpoint of all soldiers and they don't know those viewpoints."
In the course of an afternoon at a picnic in the woods with friends, family and most importantly to all of them, other veterans, 4 new members joined IVAW. One of them mentioned that he had heard of the organization while he was on active duty and had gone along with the dissing it received from his fellow soldiers at the time. He spoke with the sure, straight no nonsense one comes to expect of people who have witnessed things most of their countrymen will be spared experiencing. There was a long, uneasy pause when he relayed that the people he talked to said, 'Don't even bother with them.' There it was. The point where judgement is made. "And from what I experienced today?" he looked around at all the faces listening, then broke into a grin. "I'm glad I didn't listen to them."

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• raq
• Veterans
• Against
• the
• War
• IVAW
• peace
• movement
• Vet's
• Rights
• Impeachment
• civil
• disobedience

[makemerry]

Thanks for posting. Thanks for speaking out against the war.

[deadbodyboi]

EVIL COMMUNIST

[theropingeffect]

Why should I comment you? This video is about Iraq Veterans Against the War. You could work on your spelling and grammar.

[rfbjr]

you saw it and you didnt report it come now get real my time there was long but i heard of two rapes and we where at the largeest base there so try again fishboy .get a grip grow up i was just much a dog as everybody else

[rfbjr]

yes yoiu dum fuck i have but read the dam message then comment me god what a dum ass i have 3 mos and your point is ??????????????????

[theropingeffect]

Have you ever heard of having more than one MOS?

[rfbjr]

i served in the army for 20 yrs you dont go from medic to to mp not even for a mission maybe a security team but not mp a nrmal whiney bitch in the army not doing nothing i was in iraq from june 2003 till march 2005 the girls partied just as hard as the guys i witnessed first hand that so called rape was cause the guy want to screw somwbody else join the army but dont whien about you r service

[bamboosgt]

Kelly is a succint spokesperson and has a unique woman's perspective on women and the military. She is a heroine-  I salute her.

Salaam! Shalom! Siochan!

[FreeGlobalEnergy]

Women in military sexually attacked by men. You could solve this problem, if sexually attacked get a group of women and castrate the guy, eventually men would be too afraid to rape any women. Problem solved.

[nodysseus]

she kills a kid and the officer gets the hate for being a meanie.....not to mention the fact that that since they allowed the woman to do just that it totally destroys her argument about the supposed injustice of the army not giving women the pill...