Photo: Alan Smigielski

On April 29-30, people of faith and conscience gathered with Christian Peace Witness for Iraq to pray and act for a definitive end to the US war. After an ecumenical religious service, hundreds of people processed through the streets of Washington to Lafayette Park for prayer and a sharing of bread, followed by a journey across the street to the White House where a delegation brought loaves of bread — as symbols of repentance, reconstruction and reconciliation — and where twenty people engaged in nonviolent civil disobedience and were arrested.  Below are reflections of six of the arrestees written by Mary Jane Parrine Ehmke, Kathy Kelly, Sr. Carol Gilbert, OP, Sr. Ardeth Platte, OP, Khristine Hopkins, and Vicki Andrews.

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Mary Jane Parrine Ehmke:

 Thanks to all.

One word – gratitude —stays with me after my experience in this year’s Christian Peace Witness for Iraq: Thanks for the beauty of the liturgy, with the inspiration of words spoken and sung.  Thanks also for the cumulative sacrifice of all who poured their lives into planning, organizing, praying, and creative building on so much past action for this recent peacemaking effort.  Thanks most of all for God’s grace and love that gets us through everything.

The action the night of April 29th led to my first time in jail.  As I was blessed with the support of kindred spirits throughout the time after arrest in front of the White House, and as I dealt with the unexpected miseries of that time, a stream of thought flowed through my groggy head, all in a bewildered trance of: observation and inner commentary “Wow, it’s really nice to lie down horizontally even if it is on a metal shelf” or “if it weren’t for these wonderful people I’m with, I’d be a mess” or “this makes me appreciate the rest of my life, but for a lot of these women in jail, there IS no other life ” or “If I don’t get out of here soon, I’ll go nuts from the constant noise.”

 

One word—gratitude—stays with me after my experience in this year’s Christian Peace Witness for Iraq

In short, it was hard to focus on anything spiritually comforting, at least for me, but good to chat, doze, and try to maintain whatever inner calm I could muster.  My cell mates helped; I was so lucky to be with Ardeth in the cell block, then with Carol, Ardeth, and Joan in the holding cell at the court house, all of whom tolerated my antsy way of coping.

We kept in touch with Vicki and Kathy next door, and with their feisty cell mate who was in our same predicament for just taking a sip from a bottle of beer as she was walking home from the grocery store.  Finally in court she was released to pay a $25 fine, but had NOT been offered the same chance as we were to post and forfeit. For all of us in the April 30 daytime cells, even those in the larger cells in the holding area us, eight hours locked into a room with feet shackled created a sense of camaraderie found in no other way.  One of our greatest compliments at the end of the day was from Vicki and Kathy’s cell mate, who said “You are all really strong ladies.” 

Toward the end of our long wait for a court appearance, when everybody with me and across the way seemed to be asleep and no guards were around, I still had to get some exercise.  I even tried climbing up the red cast iron bars to reach the ceiling, a childish stunt which was actually a lot of fun in spite of the leg shackles.  I’m glad nobody noticed.  Or if they did, I guess it was no big deal for someone to act strangely.  At about 3:30 PM it was exhilarating to be moved finally to the court house cells, even if that meant a more elaborate set of shackles.  There it was good to see Ed, Fr. Louis, and Roger again and to be able to chat a bit across the walls.

Then the court. Though our Community Service “diversion” agreement allowed a “not guilty” plea, it didn’t allow a chance for a public statement, something I miss.  I admire Vicki’s, Joan’s and Roger’s decision to go to trial and look forward to learning the outcome.  Each of us, whatever path we take concerning action or arrest, is part of the greater community that we need to maintain.  As a member of that community, I’ll add below a part of a statement I made in a Santa Barbara Court a few months ago, since it would probably have been close to what I would have said if given the chance.

Gratitude fills me again for all that I experienced Thursday afternoon April 30.  I will never forget how good it felt to see maybe 8 or 9 CPWI folks, including Ken Butigan, in the courtroom when we were brought in one by one.  They all had to wait long hours for us to appear.  Ann Wilcox had been able to visit us briefly beforehand in the holding cells, but her presence next to each of us as we stood before the court especially sustained us through this last phase of our 20 hours in custody. Her packed day of advocating (for us and those arrested at the anti-torture demonstration) must have been exhausting. 

That goes for all who supported us.  Ken helped us all get to Anacostia to pick up our confiscated IDs and other possessions (minus money, which had to retrieved early the next AM) – a hectic effort.  People at the CPWI office at the National City Christian Church, including Diana Gibson, offered TLC to those of us who had to return for stored stuff.  It was great to have real snacks, a caffeine boost, plus a chance to sort ourselves out before going on to our next steps.

The sentence to community service was another chance for amazing grace to well up.  Working for a day with a “supervisor,” a young man from SAM (DC Sanitation and Maintenance ) actually went quickly. We talked as we walked between sweeping spots and transfers of barrel contents; I learned about his life, his views on how African Americans are treated in D.C., and his pride in his organizing methods to keep his quadrant near Judiciary Square as neat and clean as possible. 

Nearby, under or within the building at 300 Indiana Ave. (near 3rd and C Street), I thought about people continuing to be held in the Central Cell Block, many on minor charges or even because of administrative glitches.  (Click here for location.)  After our work day together, my supervisor was going to take me to that place so we could pray for all those currently in the cells. Time ran out, but the prayer goes on.

Now that Ed and I are home in California, decompression is easier as regular life resumes.  It helped that the end of our visit included being with Virginia friends and three days in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Now the difficult realities of our world need to be faced again, for me with a new perspective on possible consequences of civil resistance.  Now too I realize how much we all draw from our spiritual foundations to continue work as peacemakers.  

If I had spoken before sentencing, it would have been something like this:

I prayed in front of the White House that night to make a statement that thousands of people share. This is our prayer: that there can be a conversion of weapons production and war profiteering to a commitment to bring bread to the world. Compassion instead of wars and killing.  Our country’s high principles need to be restored.  I and the others with me did not obey the order to move because we know that by civil resistance we are following what Jesus taught.

For that same reason, this time I refused to pay the fine, though will gladly donate the $100 to a police welfare fund. Law enforcement and international regulation of crime —these are noble efforts. But not the way our country allows war of aggression to continue and proceeds only timidly toward  nuclear disarmament. President Obama’s administration has the heart to do more.  Otherwise militarism will continue to distort the concept of defense to an extreme that is wrong in every moral sense and against Gospel teaching.

In the Acts of the Apostles (4:13-21) there is a description of Peter and John appearing before the Sanhedrin. They had been arrested for telling people about the teaching of Jesus and then they were warned not to continue speaking. Their reply was “Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.”

  

Kathy Kelly:

May 11, 2009

On May 9th, the New York Times reported that a top White House aide, Louis Caldera, resigned for his role in Air Force One’s photo-op flyover above New York City.  On April 27th, Caldera’s office had arranged for a huge passenger jet and an F-16 fighter plane to fly past the Statue of Liberty and over the Manhattan financial district.  Panicked workers streamed out of their offices and into the streets when they saw the low flying plane go past their office windows.  White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said that President Obama was furious when he heard about the incident.

We knelt in front of the White House believing quite simply that war is not the answer.  We brought our grievance to the White House, and our grievance brought us to our knees.   Low-flying planes understandably cause panic.  Imagine the planes that fly, with no pilot, over remote villages in Pakistan and Afghanistan, searching for Al Qaeda members, and sometimes attacking, with missiles and bombs, the homes and villages where an Al Qaeda militant might live.  

Amir mir, writing from Lahore, Pakistan, reported in The News on April 10, 2009 that ”Of the 60 cross-border predator strikes carried out by the Afghanistan-based American drones in Pakistan between January 14, 2006 and April 8, 2009, only 10 were able to hit their actual targets, killing 14 wanted al-Qaeda leaders, besides perishing 687 innocent Pakistani civilians. The success percentage of the US predator strikes thus comes to not more than six per cent.”

Urged by the U.S., Pakistan’s military has, since May 8, waged an offensive against suspected Taleban militants in the Swat valley, in Northwest Pakistan, which aims to purge the militants, drive them out, eradicate them.  Hundreds of thousands of Pakistani people are streaming into the roads, crowding into refugee camps, fleeing in terror. 

Were there alternative ways to undermine the Taleban’s control over areas of Northwest Pakistan? Alleviating impoverishment, assisting development of education, promoting means for communication, and helping Pakistan improve social services could, in the long run, persuade Pakistan’s Pashtun tribal people to risk noncooperation with the Taleban.  These measures could lower the numbers of young people willing to join the Taleban.  Instead, the U.S. insists that Pakistan must use military force, overwhelming military force, to accomplish an ethnic cleansing in the area.  

The Air Force One flyover that frightened Manhattan residents could be a window through which we can understand the panic, fear, bereavement and anger now felt by people who’ve fled from U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan. Pakistan’s government officials asked the U.S. to please stop these attacks, assuring the U.S. government that the attacks fuel more support for the Taleban as well as anti-American resentment.  But the U.S. presses on, knowing that Pakistan’s government won’t want to jeapordize U.S. military and economic aid and will, therefore, submit in quiet cooperation. 

The U.S. government wants our submission as well, our accomodating collaboration with the obscenely bloated military budgets and wildly dangerous killing machines built by our warrior culture.   

We knelt in front of the White House, on April 29th, believing quite simply that war is not the answer.  What war hasn’t occasioned a horrific surge in violence, revenge, retaliation and bloodletting?  We brought our grievance to the White House, and our grievance brought us to our knees.  

Muriel Lester once asked her listeners whose side they’d rather be on, that of the peacemakers or that of the fat cats that profit from war.  It was a gift to kneel beside the fine and beautiful people, under a gentle rain, who gathered for the Christian Peace Witness in 2009.  I hope our numbers will be strengthened, day by day, aggrieved by war and yet committed to follow Jesus of Nazareth in refusal to collaborate.  

 

Sister Carol Gilbert, O.P. and Sister Ardeth Platte, O.P.:

The witness of April 29th was especially meaningful to us.  We realized that it was the feast of the great Dominican Saint Catherine of Siena who was the strong and persistent woman for all of us Dominican Sisters. 

Also, it was special to be present with all faiths of people as we gathered for the service, to share bread and funds as our symbols of bringing together the message of the need for bread throughout the Washington DC area and the need for funds as direct aid to the Iraqi people. 

We loved the solemnity and the carefulness to be nonviolent, to circle together in front of the White House…Twenty of us kneeling with bread in hand and our statements for loving one another, making peace and justice… 

These symbols make the contrast clear regarding our attempt to speak truth about the issue of war in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and possibly Iran in the future.  We see the relationship so clearly between “swords and plowshares” in this whole event.  The  prayers, the music, the speakers provided for the weaving of the mosaic throughout the hour and a half service.  Then we walked through the night in the rain with a candle lit, singing and rousing the public to our cry for an end to war, entering Lafayette Park.   The whole body processed across the street to give the bread and Word to end present wars and all war forever to President Obama.  

We loved the solemnity and the carefulness to be nonviolent, to circle together in front of the White House where the President had just finished his press conference.  Twenty of us kneeling with bread in hand and our statements for loving one another, making peace and justice and praying while the police pushed the singing crowds back while making the arrests one by one. 

We felt blessed to be with such wonderful people for our first arrest since our 2002 action, Sacred Earth and Space Plowshares II, at a missile silo in Colorado.  Having completed our years in prison and years of probation in that witness, we began once again to call for an end to the very war that we had warned about five months before the bombing began.  

Our nation suffers from the illegal threats to use nuclear weapons, the illegal war in Iraq, the illegal use of torture and rendition, the lies and scandalous attempt to cover up the mistakes regarding nuclear weapons in Iraq and the false information about the attempts to obtain enriched uranium, the killing of civilians and use of radioactive depleted uranium.  The list goes on. 

We were processed, given the opportunity to post and forfeit $100.00. Eleven persons did so, while nine of us refused, so we entered Central Cell Block around 2 A.M.  We were taken to the jail cells in the court house in early morning.  It is never a surprise for us to hear the women prisoners ask what we were protesting.  When we stated “war and killing” they reiterated over and over: thanks sisters, keep strong, keep on doing so.  They see the relationships clearly. 

The six of us who opted for community service the following day, formed a bond and community as we swept the streets of DC.  We felt closer to the struggling classes as we worked together in this way.  Thanks to all who brought us together for these important days in these urgent times. 

With love, 

Sister Carol Gilbert, O.P. and Sister Ardeth Platte, O.P.

 

Khristine Hopkins:

May 8, 2009, Provincetown, MA

I have been thinking about what I would write to reflect on the recent CPWI action, on why I chose to be arrested, and what it meant to me. What came vividly to mind was the Cloud of Witnesses that supported me as I stood…anxious introvert that I am…feeling naked under those blindingly bright lights, awaiting arrest.

My “cloud” was mostly made up of the members of the tiny congregation of St. Mary of the Harbor, Provincetown, Massachusetts…at the very tip of Cape Cod, or as we say, “where the land, the sea, and the sacred meet.” Without their prayers, financial contributions, and love, I would likely have been standing somewhere else at that moment. They became my spiritual affinity group. So I decided to share with you the reflection I wrote for this beloved community which will appear shortly in our newsletter, “The Outermost Voice”:

“In the wake of the horror of civilian death and escalation of the war in Afghanistan, it is a great temptation for many of us to forget about Iraq. It can be very easy to do. We may say it was caused by another administration, or “it’s winding down anyway”, or any number of excuses to avoid remembering the “shock and awe” invasion of Iraq which happened in our names, and the ongoing hell which is daily life for the Iraqi people.

I found deep meaning and hope in an interaction I had with the officer who was patting me down soon after I was handcuffed. She explained that she was searching me for weapons. When I said, “The only weapon we have here is love,” she looked right in my eyes and very quietly replied, “I know.”

That is why I felt sure it was more important than ever to participate in this year’s Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, which was timed to coincide with President Obama’s 100th day in office on April 29th. It is also why I honor more than ever the contributions of the many members of St. Mary of the Harbor who made it possible for me to go on this pilgrimage to Washington DC. It means that, at least in this congregation, there are many Christians who refuse to turn away from the sorrow and devastation of Iraq.

As we witnessed in front of the White House that rainy evening, we delivered to the President our requests for justice and succor for the people of Iraq. What undergirded our requests was a deep belief that justice must be first served by repentance, that we will be redeemed as a people by that act, expressed by our president as a humble apology to the people of Iraq. To that end, hundreds of marchers broke bread together by candlelight in a ceremony across the street from the White House. Some of us came to the gate of the White House with a basket of bread and asked that our president break bread with us in an act of repentance.

Those twenty of us who were prepared to participate in a non-violent act of civil disobedience knelt on the sidewalk in front of the White House and prayed and sang until we were arrested. I found deep meaning and hope in an interaction I had with the officer who was patting me down soon after I was handcuffed. She explained that she was searching me for weapons. When I said, “The only weapon we have here is love,” she looked right in my eyes and very quietly replied, “I know.”

Thank you for your generosity…because of it there is money left over to divide between the Episcopal Peace Fellowship and St. Mary of the Harbor Outreach programs. Thank you for your faith, and thank you for refusing to forget the people of Iraq.

In Peace,

 Khristine

 

Joan Nicholson:

 I feel very thankful to all those who worked so hard to arrange the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq event. I am very grateful that I was able to participate in it, and that I can follow through with it to the trial. The church session was powerfully inspiring! Even people who were not present but have read the program, have been very moved by it. “Peace, Salaam, Shalom” was a perfect expression which I’ve added to the songs I sing (to myself) while vigiling by Highway 1 during rush hours.

I was buoyed up by the deep spirituality and commitment and also humor of those in our group who were detained. And then there was the stark reality of all the destitute prisoners who are shoved deeper and deeper into an abyss rather than being given the opportunity to move forward in their lives.

“Peace, Salaam, Shalom” was a perfect expression which I’ve added to the songs I sing while vigiling

I was especially reminded of their vulnerability when I was hauled a long way (with tight metal handcuffs behind the back-and a slightly arthritic shoulder) to a hospital, because I had prescribed medication. And this, even though I assured the police that I was definitely okay, and was not into suing. Apparently they were afraid being sued. The stay in the hospital was fairly brief. I didn’t sign a paper I was asked to sign, and a doctor saw that there was no reason for me to be there. When I was brought to the Central Cell Block (did not know where I was then), two guards made a great racket for 10 minutes, trying to open a cell door for me. They failed, and it seemed that if they ever did manage to put a prisoner inside, maybe they wouldn’t be able to open the door again.

When we retrieved our belongings after being in court, the medication had disappeared! I think all of this was due to incompetence, not intention, but such behavior and negligence toward people with no resources and support could result in serious conseqences for them. And to top it all off, I have received two bills, totaling $345 (for a grand night out?), which I am returning with letters describing the circumstances.

After the CPWI event, I was at a demonstration at the first big Army Experience Center, which sucks in children as young as 13. The army hopes to set up such centers in malls across the country. Then this past week, I witnessed all those in the House of Representatives rise and have a long moment of silence in honor of the U.S. soldiers who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan-and all this as the Reps. were in the process of voting for $96.7 billion, most of it to be used to continue and even accelerate the deadly carnage!

The Christian Peace Witness for Iraq is a precious beacon of hope in this very dark time. Thank you again for the vision it provides and for all your efforts!
 

Vicki Andrews:

Reflections on Jail with Christian Peace Witness for Iraq

On April 29, 2009, I was privileged to be able to join with members of the Christian Peace Witness to lift our voices against the war in Iraq and to ask our government to repent of our actions and make reparations to the people of Iraq. 

After an inspiring service in the National City Church, we had a candlelight procession to Lafayette Park, just across the street from the White House.  After a period of inspirational talks, prayer and a ceremony of blessing and sharing bread, we proceeded across Pennsylvania Avenue to the gates of the White House where leaders met with White House guards and asked to present a basket of bread to a representative of the President.. The offer was refused and twenty of us chose to remain and stand or kneel in front of the White House. 

We expected that we would be arrested, but none of us knew that we would spend the next twenty hours incarcerated.  There had been an agreement that we would be allowed to post and forfeit and be free to leave after processing or to plead guilty, be released after processing and come back to trial.  

On the plane trip back home I was sitting next to a woman who was a committed Republican.  As we got up to leave she said, with tears in her eyes, “Thank you for what you’re doing. Please keep it up. This horrible war has got to end.  I have three nephews in the service and one is heading for Afghanistan.”  The rules changed at some point in the evening and we were informed by the officers that if we did not post and forfeit we would be locked up in the Central Cell Block in downtown D.C.  The officers we dealt with seemed unhappy with this change and very clearly did not want to send us to Central Cell Block.  Several of them told us what a horrible place it was, how terrible the other prisoners would be and pleaded with us to post and forfeit for our own health and safety.  Nine of us chose not to post and forfeit and were transported to Central Cell Block where we were processed (fingerprinted, photographed, etc.) and held in small cells until we could be taken to the overnight cells at approximately 3:30 a.m.  We were given a packet with a bologna and cheese sandwich and some lemonade.

My cell had a resident already; she had the bottom bunk so I had to climb up on the toilet and the sink to make it to the top bunk.  The bunks were steel, with no padding.  At least there was no place for bed bugs, lice, or other small creatures to hide, but it was a very uncomfortable place to try to rest, and sleep was out of the question. Lights were on all night and guards were coming and going, sometimes bringing new people in, sometimes just checking on prisoners. 

One man down the hall spent the night yelling and screaming obscenities and when we were awakened at 6 a.m. two women in our unit joined in. It seemed as though each one was trying to outdo the other; it also seemed as through they couldn’t stop even if they wanted to. 

We were offered another bologna and cheese sandwich and some lemonade. At 7 a.m. we were taken to another building (handcuffed and shackled) to be placed in a holding cell to wait for court. The cells consisted of hard benches to sit on and a toilet and sink combination.

The two women who had been yelling obscenities continued; they were given a drug test and then moved to another area.  I was told they would be placed in solitary confinement until they were quiet.  How frightening that must have been for them. The overwhelming feeling I had during my short jail experience was a very deep sorrow.  The women who were locked up with us were so obviously women who had never had a chance in life.  Many of them had been in and out of the jail system early in life and often and would probably be back, but I saw them reaching out to help and comfort others.   I was even more saddened by the attitude of the jailers.  I realize that it must be a difficult job and that most of the jailers have had to develop a thick shell to continue working in the system, but almost all of them had a very disdainful attitude towards the prisoners. 

To pass the time I tried to pray, to meditate, and to reflect on why we were there, but I found that it was difficult to focus because of the constant noise and commotion. I did manage to say the rosary a few times, using my fingers as beads. The words of some of the peace songs we had sung the night before went through my head over and over. 

I thought about the people who are imprisoned unjustly for long periods of time and have been in custody for years.  I reflected that I was standing up to the evil of war and representing many people I know who are opposed to war, but hadn’t been  able to join us in this experience.  I was inspired by the stories of some of the heroes in our group, people like Kathy Kelly, Father Louis Vitale, Ardyth Platte and Carol Gilbert of Jonah House.  They have been arrested and imprisoned over and over in their lives and keep on going. It helped me through the process just to have them in our group. 

I thought that if Jesus were here in person today, he would have been in our group.  I know that it wouldn’t have been an occasional thing for him and that he would keep going back to the White House and to Congress day after day, probably getting arrested on a regular basis to protest the destruction that we have brought to the people of Iraq and Afghanistan and to urge repentance and reparation.  I believe that we were truly following his path and doing his work in the world.  I also reflected on the presence of God in all people, even the angriest of the prisoners and guards and in all places, even in Central Cell Block in Washington, D.C. When we were led from the cell block to go to court at 3 p.m., the women who were who were left behind waiting for their time in court stood and applauded us. 

On the plane trip back home I was sitting next to a woman who was a committed Republican.  We visited a bit and I did share what I had done in D.C.  After that she was quiet for most of the trip and I thought she may be offended, but as we got up to leave she said, with tears in her eyes, “Thank you for what you’re doing. Please keep it up. This horrible war has got to end.  I have three nephews in the service and one is heading for Afghanistan.”

My first few days back home, I’ve had tears in my eyes quite often and a lump in my throat as I think back to the event, the inspirational talks at the church, the service in Lafayette Park, the sharing of bread, the wonderful people who shared the experience with me, the troops heading to war, and the women who will continue to be in and out of the jail system because of the lack of other opportunities in their lives.