Two Santa Clara University students and I joined about 50 other Northern California folks on a pilgrimage to Washington, D.C., May 1-4, to call for the closure of the School of the Americas (SOA).
Even though we were upstaged by Bill's war and the lingering concern about school violence, it was a worthwhile trip. We reconnected with about 3,000 other like-minded people from around the country, including Pete Seeger and Roy Bourgeois. We walked the halls of Congress. We sang, laughed, and wept.
I was hampered by a cold and a sore knee (surgery next Monday), so I missed the demonstration on Monday morning at the Pentagon. We had planned all day Sunday for this event and for lobbying later. At 6:40 A.M. about 1,500 people assembled in front of the Pentagon, with white masks, crosses, and huge puppets which represent the malefactors of SOA. They processed around that huge, faceless (no windows) monolith, and then they tore to bits a paper mache skull, the SOA, and buried it in soil brought from all over the U.S. Finally, about 50 people lay down in the street, and 50 others outlined their bodies in red paint. These 50 were then arrested and booked. They must return for trial in several months.
Californians were elated that both our senators, Boxer and Feinstein, have signed on as co-sponsors to Senator Durkin's bill to close the SOA, SB 873. And all the democratic representatives of the Bay Area are co-sponsors of HR 732. So our lobbying work was easy; thank these congress people and ask them to write "dear colleague" letters to other congress people, urging them to join as co-sponsors.
On Tuesday morning, Frank Kreiebaum, one of the SCU students, and I were surprised to meet with Diane Feinstein in her office. I took a photo of her with Frank, which we will submit to local papers for publication. At least it will be in the SCU paper.
Now the work begins. It is essential that everyone who feels that our tax money should no longer fund the "School of Assassins" write, call, visit their representatives, hounding them until they agree to support these bills (HR 732 & SB 873). You can find these bills at www.soaw.org, along with instructions on whom and how to lobby.
With war fever enthralling our country, it will be an uphill battle to win this one, but the lives, the dignity, the hope of millions of people in Latin America depend on us to carry through with this work of social justice.
SOAW has produced another video, again narrated by Susan Sarandon. It is 16 minutes long, and it presents last November's Fort Benning demonstration. It is called Crossing the Line. You can get a copy from SOA for $10.
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