Freedom Plaza, Washington DC, day one. (photo by Cheryl Biren)
The October 2011 actions, put together by a varied collection of veteran activists, had been in the planning for six months. It was intended to provoke, or further, our national conversation about the major issues our nation must face. I had heard about the action in the early summer and was hooked. It seemed like the right action, at the right time, with the right people, for the right reasons. I committed to attend and contacted the organizers to volunteer my efforts. I was offered the "position" of Florida Contact and, not knowing how to do it, accepted. My goal was to "spread the word" in South Florida and I did my best, meeting a lot of amazing people along the way.
OUR BIGGEST PROBLEM IS
THAT WE'RE IGNORING
OUR PROBLEMS
(Actual
protest sign)
In poll after poll, the majority of people in the US consistently support a progressive agenda: end the wars and cut military spending, protect the social safety net and create Medicare for all, create jobs and protect workers' rights, transition to a clean energy economy, tax the rich and the corporations more fairly, and, the KEY to it all, GET MONEY OUT OF POLITICS! These are issues that our dysfunctional, corporate-owned government is unable or unwilling to address, so it's left to "We the People" to make sure they're on the national agenda.
The citizens
who journeyed to DC came to march, to chant, to yell, to be disruptive, to call
attention to problems, to force the issues.
We're activists, dammit! We
wanted action! And we got it. There were, during the 8 days I was there, an
average of 2 or more actions per day. We
were busy and delighted!
We marched to the United States Chamber of Commerce (photo by Rob Kall)
We marched on the United States Chamber of Commerce and tried to submit job applications to the "job creators," we marched to General Atomics (sic), a drone contractor, to remind everyone that "when drones fly, children die." A group went to the Air and Space museum intending to do a "die-in" at the drone exhibit. This action was cut short because an agent-provocateur from a conservative publication infiltrated the group, spoiled the plan, and subsequently bragged about it.
We did, however, manage to briefly shut down the Museum and get a lot of press attention. The Veterans for Peace and other military family groups went to the White House en masse to invite President Obama to a Beer Summit about war and veterans issues. We even offered to buy the beer!
Vets March at White House photo by Cheryl Biren, from her Stop the Machine/Occupy DC set.
We picketed at a defense trade show, AUSA, at the Washington DC Convention Center.
We surprised 6 well-dressed members of the Military-Industrial Complex having a very very nice lunch among the tanks and armored cars on display. When we started taking their pictures, they scattered like roaches do when you turn on the lights. We felt the power of truth.
