Voice of the Iraq Vet #1 - Chicago Occupied/Operation First Casualty
"Chicago Occupied"
Our friends at Labor Beat in Chicago sent us this piece, about a street theater-style action where members of Iraq Vets Against the War, dressed in battle gear, did a mock patrol, sweeping up and mistreating Chicago civilians in the same style they did in Iraq. This action was modeled after a similar action by Vietnam Vets Against the War, done in the early 1970s, during the US invasion and occupation of Viet Nam, (the "RAW March," which we have archival footage of, and hope to put on a future "Indymedia Presents" episode, for its historical interest). Much like VVAW of yesteryear, IVAW has played an important role in opposing the US presence in Iraq, as well they should. Nobody knows the horror of the American presence better than its victims, the Iraqi people, but their voice is not at all present in the American discourse on the war. Next to the Iraqis, the American soldiers who have served in Iraq have the most to say and IVAW has been a strong voice, trying to alert the American public to the wrongfulness of US actions over there, using increasingly creative ways to get the word to the people here at home. Their efforts reflect a tremendous faith in Americans. The idea is that if Americans are confronted with the truth, they will not turn away, but will stop the war.
Although "Chicago Occupied" was made before the latest scandal developed, regarding the Blackwater mercenaries in Iraq, it sheds some light on that situation. Blackwater is accused of randomly shooting at civilians who have pulled over to allow the US convoys to go by. Apparently its not a few loose cannons, or an isolated incident, but done routinely, as policy. The world over people don't really mind pulling over when the the flashing blue lights race by, with nary a bad thought or negative attitude towards the authorities when we do so. But if the cops randomly shot as us as they careened by, we'd all get restive real quick. Putting aside for a moment the question of whether the US should be in Iraq, it is a legitimate question to ask "Are American soldiers and the US-hired mercenaries in Iraq there to pacify the Iraqis, or to bully and incite them?" Is this a new and very bad definition of "making war," where we keep the war going (and therefore profitable) by mistreating the Iraqis until they HAVE to resist? In "Chicago Occupied" we see American veterans, returned from Iraq, trying to bring a message to the American people about what they are actually doing to the Iraqis.
Voice of the Iraq Veteran #2 Ryan Lockwood
This is the second short in the Voice of the Veteran Series. Each of these episodes is a snippet from interviews PepperSpray did with vets during the 2006 Veterans For Peace national convention. In this one, Lockwood recounts what turned him around, as real-life experience changed him from somebody who thought killing would be cool to a veteran dedicated to ending the war. Save Cascade
Gentrification seems to be a universal problem in America. This week we feature a story in progress, about a lively community center in the South Lake Union area of Seattle that is being threatened with closure because the city plans to cut off its funding. The Cascade People's Center provides many progressive groups with free space for meetings, as well as after school programs for kids, and on and on. But in Paul Allentown, to borrow Seattle busker Jim Page's term, it is apparently a useless relic of a pre-gentrification past. Of course the volunteers and those who benefit from the many programs at the Cascade People's Center have a different opinion, and off they went to march to City Hall to kick off their campaign to "Save Cascade." PepperSpray videographers were there, and this is the story, with a musical score provided by two of Seattle's well-know buskers, Jim Hinde and Jim Page. With Choices Like These
Jonny Hahn is the piano-playing busker often seen down at Seattle's Pike Place Market. Here he plays an election-themed song in his finest bandaged-finger style. Thank You Lt. Watada
Lt. Watada update from outside the Federal Courthouse in Tacoma, WA
The brave Lt.'s stay has been extended, as Federal Judge Settle considers the issue of double jeopardy. In this short update a retired Navy Commander and even a statue get into the act of standing against illegal, immoral war.
Voice of the Iraq Veteran #4 / Oaxaca: They TOOK the Media
We start off this episode with the 4th in a little series we have been doing, "Voice of the Veteran." In this episode, we do a street interview at a demonstration with Evan Knappenberger, an Iraq vet who was in the US Army Infantry. He tells a story of GI resistance that occurred when he was in Iraq that perhaps begins to explain why US casualties are declining, even though the Iraqi people have not found a new love for their American occupiers.
