Wife of Army Spc. Agustín Aguayo;
Mother of Army Spc. Suzanne Swift
www.couragetoresist.org/donate

October 26, 2007

Dear Friend,

If you feel anything like we do, you are beyond frustrated by years of war that appear endless. Presidential candidates, Democrats and Republicans alike, are offering little hope that this nightmare of unjust occupation and war will be over anytime soon. It appears that it really is up to us, “the people,” to stop this war.

West Point Grad Wins Objector Status

By the Associated Press. October 16, 2007 

FORT DRUM, N.Y. (AP) — A West Point graduate who cited his religious beliefs in a lawsuit against the Army while serving in Iraq has been granted conscientious objector status and given an honorable discharge.

Capt. Peter Brown, a 2004 graduate and member of the 10th Mountain Division, said his religious convictions prevented him from carrying a loaded weapon or ordering his men to use lethal force.

"I'm relieved the Army recognized that my religious beliefs made it impossible for me to serve as a soldier," Brown said in a news release issued Tuesday through the American Civil Liberties Union, which had intervened and filed a lawsuit on his behalf in U.S. District Court in Washington.

"Refuse to kill. Refuse the order to go to war ... We know your resistance to war will be difficult and require great courage."

By Jonah House and Dorothy Day Catholic Worker. September 28, 2007

Brothers and sisters in the military: "Refuse to fight! Refuse to kill!"

You are being ordered to war in the footsteps of veterans, who, more than 10 years ago, were sent to fight the first Gulf War. Many of those vets returned with severe and unacknowledged illnesses. Many gave birth to severely deformed children. All were abandoned by the Veterans Administration.

Iraq vet Joshua Gaines

By David Solnit, Courage to Resist / Army of None Project. September 26, 2007

"I swore an oath to protect the constitution ... not to become a pawn in your New American Century."

Madison, Wisconsin--Joshua Gaines, who served a year long tour in Iraq in 2004 to 2005 with the Army Reserve, returned his Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and National Defense Service Medal to former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld today by mail as dozens of supporters look on.

Mark Wilkerson

An interview with Mark Wilkerson by Aaron Glantz, co-produced by Sarah Olson, for KPFA Radio August 18, 2007. 19 min. audio edited by Courage to Resist (transcript below). Live broadcast available here.

Following his presentation at the Courage to Resist hosted workshop at the 2007 Veterans for Peace National Convention in St. Louis, Mark sat down with Aaron Glantz and David Cortright, author of "Soldiers in Revolt".

Mark was a Army MP in Iraq. He talks about joining the military, the reality of the Iraq occupation, his five months in the Fort Sill brig, and how people can better support today's GI resisters. At the time of this interview, Mark had just been released from the brig only days earlier.

Franz Jagerstatter; soon-to-be Catholic Saint

By Logan Laituri. September 19, 2007

Many conscientious service members have been speaking out despite an often oppressive and unforgiving atmosphere. Some of us have even been persecuted and attacked while exercising our civic duty of speaking truth to power in times of moral crises. The Rev. Lennox Yearwood, an Air Force chaplain, faces accusations of working against national security. Liam Madden, fellow Iraq Veterans Against the War member and co-founder of Appeal for Redress, is defending his project against comments that are similarly repeated daily to men and women in the armed forces who are speaking out; effectively demanding that our GIs remain silent and obey our leaders blindly.

Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey

By Gerry Condon. September 12, 2007

Thousands of young men and women are AWOL from the U.S. military. Away Without Official Leave. Also known as “deserters.” But they are not AWOL from their own consciences. And they have not deserted their moral upbringings or the law. Quite to the contrary. At considerable personal risk and inconvenience, they have made a conscientious decision to separate themselves from an illegal and immoral war. They are our antiwar heroes. They very much deserve our support. And they very much need it.

A couple hundred AWOL GI’s are currently living in Canada. They are from the U.S. Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force. Many of them served one tour in Iraq and then refused to go back again. Instead, they and their families have moved to Canada. With the support of many Canadians, they are struggling to create a home for themselves and a sanctuary for war resisters.

By Army National Guard Spc. Justin Cliburn. September 10, 2007

"No, I am not going back to participate in that war."

I had drill this weekend. Drill has been a forever-evolving presence in my life for the past six years. I went from looking forward to drill to hating it to missing it while I was in Iraq and back to looking forward to it when I returned. I used to hate drill, but found myself liking the weekends where I was reunited with those that I spent a year with in Iraq. Over the past few months, that has turned into dread, and I am questioning whether or not I can remain an effective member of the military.

Dave Cline at the Oleo Strut, 1970

"He has played a tremendous role in making Sir! No Sir! the spark for today's GI Movement that it has been."

I am very sad to have to report the news that Dave Cline died this past weekend.

There are many wonderful tributes to Dave being written at Veterans for Peace, and I would like to add some personal reflections on the part of his life with which I was deeply connected-the GI Movement against the Vietnam War. I hope you will indulge some nostalgic reminiscing here-there really is a point to it.

Let me say up front that without Dave Cline, Sir! No Sir! would not have been made.

Eli Israel speaks out at Kennebunkport rally. 8/25/07. Photo: V Kelly Bellis

The last few months have changed my life forever. From Soldier, JVB Protective Service Agent, and Sniper in the middle of an occupation war, to anti-war veteran within days.

Thank you for your support during my moments of tragedy, and more importantly, thank you for the hope. It’s a hope for healing my soul, and finding ways to deal with the aftershocks from my role in the larger tragedy known as "Iraq".

Top: Iraq War resisters Camilo Mejia, Agustin Aguayo, Stephen Funk, Eugene Cherry, and Suzanne Swift. Bottom: Vets march to Arch

Jeff Paterson, Courage to Resist. August 21, 2007

Courage to Resist joined over 400 members of Veterans for Peace (VFP) and Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) in St. Louis, Missouri last week August 15-19 for the 22nd annual national VFP convention.

Highlights for us included: The Courage to Resist and IVAW workshop entitled, “Supporting GI Resistance;” Army Spc. Agustin Aguayo’s presentation at the Centenary Methodist Church; IVAW’s “War is Not a Game” counter-recruiting action at the Missouri Black Expo job fair; The election of Iraq War resister Camilo Mejia to the chair of the IVAW board of directors; A information picket at the St. Louis military induction center about sexual abuse in the services; And a spirited march through downtown St. Louis ending at the arch.

Over sixty people jammed into a small, sweltering conference room for our “Supporting GI Resistance” workshop featuring Iraq War veterans turned resisters Agustin Aguayo and Mark Wilkerson. Agustin and Mark each gave compelling personal accounts of resisting redeployment to Iraq, and serving over six months each in military brigs for their resistance. Tom Mortillo of IVAW and myself on behalf of Courage to Resist presented overviews of current resisters and coming efforts to launch nationwide campaigns to better “support GI resistance.”