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By Courage to Resist. Updated April 8, 2010
Consolidated and up-to-date list of easy action items
We have a lot of information about GI resistance and how to help objectors spread out over hundreds of pages on couragetoresist.org. However, sometimes folks just want to know what needs to be done and how to do it, including:
Write war resisters directly
Marc A Hall
Dept of the Army
Theater Field Confinement Facility
Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, APO AE 09366
- He is in pre-trial confinement is Kuwait. His court martial is schedule for April 27 in Iraq.
- Note that Marc is still in need of donations to cover his defense costs. Please see info below.
- Please sign the petition to drop the charges and free Marc. See info below.
US Army Specialist Marc A. Hall sits in a military brig at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, facing a April 27 General Court Martial in Iraq for challenging the US military’s Stop-Loss policy in a song. Yet it was not the hip-hop song he wrote criticizing the Stop-Loss policy that landed him in trouble. What put the 34-year-old New York City native in the brig were his persistent assertions of inadequate mental health care that culminated in a Dec. 7 complaint to the Army Investigator General. Just five days later Hall was charged with violating “good order and discipline” at Fort Stewart, Georgia, and was shipped out of the country.
Eric Jasinski
113 West Central Ave
Belton TX 76513
- His confinement is being outsourced to the county jail (address above)
- Expected release date April 27, 2010.
A Fort Hood soldier, Eric failed to redeploy with his unit to Iraq in December 2007. He went AWOL to seek real help for his PTSD. More info about Eric.
About directly corresponding with and supporting jailed military objectors
- Know that your correspondence will be read and reviewed by the military; however, general political content is not usually a basis for censorship.
- Do not send stamps, photos, magazines, newspapers, food items, toiletries, or anything of value. Photocopied articles and photocopied photos, when accompanied by a personal letter, are usually OK.
- Your name (not an organization) and return address should be printed in the outside of the envelope.
- Avoid using obscenity or plans for criminal activity.
- You may send a money order (payable to the jailed resister). This money will be deposited into their “safe keeping” fund administered by the stockade. From this fund, they may purchase postage stamps (to write you back) and phone cards (to call family and friends).
- You may send a book; however, you must order books from amazon.com (or bn.com) and have them shipped directly to the resister. Consider asking the jailed resister if they have any specific title requests, or general categories of interest (mystery, political history, sci-fi, etc.) prior to ordering.
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Donate to resister defense funds
Courage to Resist has hosted many individual resister defense funds since 2006, including Army objectors Agustin Aguayo, Cliff Cornell, Robin Long, Ryan Jackson, Tony Anderson, Victor Agosto, Alexis Hutchinson, and Travis Bishop. These funds have ensured that those courageous soldiers had civilian legal counsel and support while in jail.
The following active individual resister efforts are in need of your support. Included are the number of individual donors, amounts, and the projected need as of April 8, 2010.
Donate to Army Spc Marc Hall
Marc is currently jailed pending court martial for recording an angry hip-hop song critical of the "stop-loss" policy. More info about Marc.
164 supporters have given $6,116 of the $7,100 spent on legal fees so far. Unless we're able to raise an additional $7,500 by April 27, Marc may not have civilian representation at his court martial in Iraq.
Donate to Army Spc Eric Jasinski
Eric served in Iraq and went AWOL after returning stateside in order to get proper treatment for PTSD. More info about Eric.
15 supporters have given $880 of the needed $1,200.
Petitions and letter writing campaigns
Petitions are an important way for the community to express support for GI resistance, and to positively impact the outcome of a given situation.
Dear Canada: Let US war resisters stay!
A campaign initiated by Courage to Resist. Also: Campaign leaflets and more
"To Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada - I am writing from the U.S. to ask that you abide by the House of Commons resolution to create a program to allow war objectors, including U.S. resisters, to apply for permanent resident status in Canada and to cease all deportation and removal proceedings against them..."
Drop the charges and free Marc Hall!
A campaign initiated by Courage to Resist and Iraq Veterans Against the War.
"I’m writing to request that the charges against SPC Marc A. Hall related to his recording of a hip-hop song critical of the Army’s “stop-loss” policy be dropped, and that he be allowed to leave the Army at the end of his current enlistment. SPC Hall is currently facing over seven years of imprisonment for expressing his opposition to the Iraq War and frustration at his inability to leave the Army at the end of his four year active duty enlistment agreement though artistic expression...."
Germany: Grant André Shepherd asylum
A campaign initiated by Connection e.V., a Germany-based peace organization.
"To the German Government - AWOL U.S. soldier André Shepherd applied for asylum in Germany. His tour of duty as a U.S. soldier in Iraq made him convinced that he could no longer participate in a war which breaks international law... we appeal to you, grant André Shepherd asylum..."
More info
"Five simple things you can do to organize war resister support"
...to organize war resister support in your community
By Courage to Resist. November 7, 2008
- Organize regular letter writing parties to show support for war resisters in prison
- Host a war resister speaking event
- Help raise money for resister support
- Create your own media
- Build a base of support for war resisters in your local community
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