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Resistance R Us - Then ... and Now

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Learn more about Agustin Aguayo at www.couragetoresist.org and donate to his legal fund at www.AguayoDefense.org.

"Fellow resisters … if we stay strong, stand our ground, speak the truth, and stand up for what's right we will always be free."

Darrel Anderson, U.S. Army, 1st Armored Division

During his seven months as an infantryman in Baghdad, Darrel witnessed U.S. troops abuse and kill civilians, he refused to fire on a civilian automobile, he was wounded by a roadside bomb, and he came to the conclusion that this war is wrong. With the possibility of a second deployment to Iraq and at the urging of his conscience, he went AWOL and fled to Canada.

While he was grateful to Canada for harboring him, Darrel wanted to return to the U.S., accept his punishment – if any – from the Army, receive counseling for the symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) he sustained in Iraq, and, as he states, “get on with his life.” Darrel’s mother drove him across the Peace Bridge bordering Canada and the U.S. and he turned himself in to military custody at Ft. Sill, Okalahoma. Within five days, he was discharged with an OTH.

I counseled Darrel’s mother, Anita, during the last stage of her son’s stay in Canada. I present his case here as the outcome is very different to that of Agustin’s. Both men were in the Army, Darrel went AWOL; so did Agustin. Yet, Darrel was processed out within five days and, today, speaks publicly about his war experiences and against the war in Iraq while Agustin awaits a court martial and sentence.

Learn more about Darrel : http://www.peaceandjusticeky.org/DAnderson.htm

 

Darrel’s experiences processing out of the military are also quite different to those of his friend, Ivan Brobeck.

“When the U.S. went to war with Iraq, I was confident that my country was doing the right thing. I couldn't see why [our politicians] would lie to us. One week after I graduated I was sent off to Marine Corps boot camp. At the end of boot camp the only thing we were told about Iraq was that we were going there to die (that's was the Drill Instructor's joke).”

Lance Corporal Ivan Brobeck, U.S. Marine Corps

Ivan Brobeck enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp's Delayed Enlistment Program (DEP) at age 17 while still in high school in Arlington, Virginia. In June, 2003, one week after he graduated, he entered boot camp, completed infantry training, and joined his permanent unit stationed at Camp Lejeune. In March, 2004 Ivan deployed to Iraq.

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Susan Galleymore is the author of Long Time Passing: Mothers Speak about War and Terror, sharing the stories of people in Iraq, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and U.S. [Pluto Press 2009]. She is also host and producer of Raising Sand Radio (more...)
 
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