War protesters stop in Waunakee

By Roberta Baumann
Aug 6, 2008
Wanuakee Tribune

With temperatures in the high 80s and high humidity, several folks sitting under a shade tree in the Village Park seemed happy just to take a load off last week.

The 10 or so protesters against the war in Iraq stopped in Waunakee on their 450-mile walk from Chicago, Ill., to St. Paul, Minn., where they will conclude with the Republican National Convention.

They are part of the Witness Against War project, and during their stop in Waunakee June 29, several village residents came to visit with them and learn of their journey so far.

Area resident Don Spencer, planned to prepare lunch for the group the following day before sending them on their way.

Kathy Kelly, co-coordinator for Voices for Creative Nonviolence in Chicago, said the group had visited Gov. Doyle’s office.

“People spoke with great eloquence about the reasons for stopping the escalation of the war,” Kelly said.

The walkers come from all over the United States. Paul Melling, who served in Iraq, is from Minnesota. Alice Gerard, a freelance writer, is from New York. Josh Brollier lives in Tennessee.

But Heléne Hedburg had the longest journey to the walk - all the way from a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden.

The walkers told a little bit about themselves while resting in the shade. Many have spent time in Iraq. Dan Pearson of Chicago has worked with Iraqi refugees in Syria and Chicago.

Lauren Cannon, a minister in training now who is studying for her master’s degree in sacred theology in Chicago, traveled to Iraq in 1998, 2000 and 2001.

Alice Gerard said she was working through her depression about the war, which has cost the United States $599.5 billion since 2003.

During their walk, the group said they’ve mainly received support from people they’ve met along the way.

Although one veteran initially told the group he felt their efforts negated the work of the soldiers, his view changed when he learned of one of the group’s key objectives - highest quality health care, housing and education for U.S. veterans and their families, said Dan Pearson.

The other objectives call for withdrawal of all U.S. military forces from Iraq, an end to all military actions there, along with funding for the reconstruction of the country.

Some members of the Waunakee community asked if Melling believed the surge was working to achieve peace in the country.

“I don’t believe anything I hear from the military,” Melling said.

He noted that the military had achieved a more peaceful climate by segregating the various Iraqi populations.

The Voices for Creative Nonviolence group, which travels with a bus outfitted with beds and an eating area, planned to walk to Sauk City the following day, then to Devil’s Lake Park in their Witness Against War project.

One of the major stops along the road to St. Paul will be at Fort McCoy, the federal military base where troops are training to mobilize to Iraq in 2009.

Kelly noted that 3,000 Wisconsin combat troops will be deployed next year, the largest number since the world wars.

“That’s Wisconsin’s wealth and productivity going to a war,” Kelly said.

The protesters hoped to talk to soldiers at Fort McCoy during their stop Aug. 10, acknowledging that such action is prohibited. They planned to take a nonviolence workshop the day prior.

Kelly urged others to join in the walk, noting that about 40 or so had joined in as they made their way toward Madison.

To learn more about the Witness Against War project see the Voices for Creative Nonviolence Web site at www.vcnv.org.