Oh, what a day it was! Oh, what a day!
The tent was full, our hearts were full, and my own experience became very palpable in the reality of what it means to have a child in a position to have to lead in a conflict that has been so radically misfounded.
I spoke with a young West Point grad who has just returned from Iraq and is on his way to a base in Texas. He spoke of the difficulty of being a liberal in the Army right now. When I asked him how the soldiers dealt with the facts that have come out regarding the lack of weapons of mass destruction. He said that they simply do not choose to believe the evidence, even when faced with the results of a congressional hearing. It is a most uncomfortable position to be in when they are being asked to defend what is indefensible.
The rally was moving, inspirational, exhausting, and beautiful. Nonviolent dissent at its best. A courageous thing to watch and experience
After a week of sitting among a couple of hundred + various folks coming in, staying, going back home to work, but with quiet conversation most of the time. The week days felt more like a vigil after senseless deaths, which it was.
Then the weekend arrived, the scene changed in energy and mood. Unlike the news reports that said that “the protesters brought in busloads to assist them,” we had no idea how many busses were coming in nor where they were arriving from. We had heard that there might be five arrive. The rally was actually held off for over an hour to let all of them converge. The first arrived from Austin, and young and old stepped off the bus — people of all races and backgrounds.
The second bus arrived from San Antonio and was occupied mostly by elders. Some had to be assisted off the bus, and led to the tent. We worried about the health of some of these dedicated participants as the heat factor reached 103 degrees, with humidity high.
A third bus came in from Dallas and again was greeted by both long term campers, Cindy, and the new arrivals, ALL!
A fourth bus arrived from Austin, and the rally began, with no knowledge of if or when another bus might pull up and disembark.
The rally began with Iraq Vets Against the War who gave moving accounts of how the wires around the compounds separated the Americans from starving Iraqi children who stood with large eyes beseeching not only food but comfort.
