It was twenty-eight degrees when the Vigil began shortly after 4:00 pm on the 21st. The twenty or so participants bowed their heads as Ed Geiss of Lake-in-the-Hills prayed for peace. A reporter and a photographer from the Northwest Herald took notes and photos of us standing with our signs amidst the one-hundred luminaria and twenty-two American flags representing almost 2200 American soldiers who had died in Iraq. (The flags were 6”x9”, the size of the flags placed on the graves in Arlington National Cemetery each year on Memorial Day.)
Throughout the night people came to join us, stood with their signs in the cold, sustained in their watch by the warmth of others lobbying for peace. We were surprised and delighted to greet three different men who appeared among us at three different times offering coffee, hot chocolate and treats to keep us going through the vigil.
I, personally, will always remember sharing the corner in the wee hours with two men from our group who were as cold as I was. It was a little after 3:00 a.m. and we were alone except for a car or two or a solitary truck drifting by. It was very still. It was very cold--11 degrees--and we were trying not to focus on the time and temperature sign across the street whose numbers never seemed to change. I don’t know who began but we found ourselves breathing in and out together, singing. “Silent Night.” Never has that simple hymn meant so much to me. Memorable too, were the two young men on leave from Baghdad who walked over to the group about 10:30 to talk about their experience and views of the war, what they thought about what we were doing, and their conflicted feelings about wanting to build up the schools and other services for Iraqis and recently having to shoot at a youth they believed was a threat to them.
It is stories like this shared with people coming up to us and the dialogue of horn-honks, hand-gestures and comments hollered out from vehicles passing by that affirm for many of us in the Peace Group the vital importance of standing there on the street with our signs to raise awareness and to invite public and individual response to life and death issues.
We know from what people tell us that our vigils connect us with countless numbers of our fellow citizens in McHenry County who felt alone and isolated in their opposition to the war. They say they are grateful and inspired to see us on the corner and as a result are perhaps more inclined and more confident to engage others in conversation about what’s happening in Iraq. Whether the comments and gestures coming at us are positive or negative an important dialogue is going on here and around the country and it is clear that the national tide is turning against the US occupation of Iraq andmore and more toward the return of our troops.
A week ago on February 26th, on a Sunday morning news program, I was amazed to hear Victoria Clarke, former assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, say that it would be “unhelpful” in the next week for people to talk about withdrawing our troops from Iraq until it’s clear whether the present spate of bombings signals the beginning of civil war in Iraq. (Note the use of the term unhelpful. We used to be warned that our dissent was unpatriotic, and showed we were against America, and supporting the enemy.) I am wondering who Ms. Clarke was addressing. Certainly not our President or the administration or members of Congress--those with power, money, public relations departments and worldwide positions and opportunities to influence and control millions of people--none of whom (with the exception of Rep. John Murtha) are lifting their voices and demanding that we “bring ‘em home now.” Could she have been addressing the dozen or so progressive media commentators and journalists? The late-night comedians and talk-show hosts who have had such a field day with all the Bush material? Perhaps.
AND I suspect she was speaking directly to people like us in communities all across the land who are active in campaigns on the internet, write letters to the editor and march and stand on busy city streets holding signs calling for an end to war, occupation and torture.
In his latest book, Our Endangered Values, President Jimmy Carter predicted that the people will act together and turn the tide of American opinion against the war. We are doing just that every time we stand at Main and Route 14 in Crystal Lake. In remembering and honoring those who have sacrificed life and limb, we help to turn the tide of public opinion and hasten the end to the suffering and injustice of the war on Iraq.
See you Thursday night on
“our corner.”
Peace be with you.
