Stars and Stripes -January 25th, 1991
Vietnam vets to join war protest outside USAREUR gates
By Rick Scavetta ,
Stars and Stripes
European edition, Friday, January 17, 2003
HEIDELBERG, Germany — Anti-war activists launched a
24-hour vigil outside U.S. Army Europe headquarters Thursday evening marking
the 12th anniversary of Desert Storm.
Among the protesters — who oppose future operations
against Iraq — are U.S. Vietnam veterans from the Stop the War Brigade.
For Darnell Summers, 55, war protests began before he
shipped out to Southeast Asia in 1968, when the anti-war movement paralleled
civil rights protests.
“It’s important to pull the cover off this,” Summer(s)
said. “My generation is now promoting this war. We [Vietnam veterans] have the
responsibility to come out and make a statement against it.”
The veterans group joined about 30 German peace activists
for the vigil outside Campbell Barracks on Römerstrasse, which is also home to
V Corps headquarters. In recent weeks, the corps ordered about 3,600 troops to
deploy to the Persian Gulf region. The brigade often reaches out to soldiers in
uniform — encouraging them to speak out against a war with Iraq, Summers said.
On Friday, the veterans will challenge V Corps commander
Lt. Gen. William Wallace to a debate about a possible war with Iraq, Summers
said.
Throughout Friday, the activists will rotate shifts to
maintain a constant presence outside the base. On Saturday, a large demonstration
is scheduled for downtown Heidelberg. Protesters plan to march from the city
center, south to Campbell Barracks, where they will attempt to encircle the
base, organizers said during a press conference Thursday.
Among the supporters are members of DGB, Germany’s union
federation, said spokesman Harry Siegert. A petition opposing a U.S.-led war
with Iraq is currently circulating among union laborers in factories across the
country.
“We’re of the opinion that this war is not about freedom
or terror,” Siegert said. “It’s about economic interests.”
The Army acknowledges the activists’ right to protest but
U.S. officials will not interact with the demonstrators, said Sandy Goss, a
spokesman for Installation Management Agency, Europe Region.
“They have the right to voice their opinion,” Goss said.
“Reasonable people respect each other rights, and that people have different
opinions.”
German police are handling security, he said. He would not
comment on whether extra troops would be on hand. The Army added portable
fencing to the front entrance of Campbell Barracks, Goss said.
By Rick Scavetta ,
Stars and Stripes
European edition, Monday, January 20, 2003
Raymond T. Conway / S&S
Demonstrators gathered outside Campbell Barracks
in Heidelberg, Germany, on Thursday night, watch a video showing two
active-duty U.S. soldiers speaking out against potential war in Iraq. Organized
by the Stop the War Brigade, the 24-hour vigil outside Campbell was followed by
a demonstration on Saturday.
Raymond T. Conway / S&S
Holding signs saying "No War,"
demonstrators gather outside Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany, on
Thursday night to protest against potential war in Iraq.
Raymond T. Conway / S&S
Stop the War Brigade members, Dave Blalock, left,
G. James, and Darnell Summers, right, look over a pamphlet outside Campbell
Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany, on Thursday night. Blalock and Summers are U.S. veterans of the Vietnam War and
are protesting against potential war in Iraq, calling on soldiers of all
nations to "refuse, resist and rebel," taking part in any action in
Iraq.
Raymond T. Conway / S&S
Holding signs saying "War is Always
Terror" and "Stop the Craziness," demonstrators gather outside
Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany, on Thursday night to protest against
potential war in Iraq.
Raymond T. Conway / S&S
Tony Quantrell from Liverpool, England, flashes a
peace sign at passing motorists outside Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg,
Germany, on Thursday night. Quantrell, a member of the Scottish Socialist
Party, flew in from the U.K. on Tuesday to take part in a protest against
potential war in Iraq.
HEIDELBERG, Germany — Anti-war activists took to the
streets of Heidelberg over the weekend to protest against a possible war with
Iraq. The demonstration coincided with the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. birthday
holiday, the 12th anniversary of the Gulf War and worldwide protests.
Outside U.S. Army Europe headquarters, Vietnam veterans
joined German peace demonstrators Thursday night for a daylong vigil across
from Campbell Barracks. On Saturday, protesters marched from the city center to
the small base, which is also home to the U.S. Army V Corps.
While the protests remained peaceful, the veterans
involved made sure their message was loud and clear.
“George Bush, we know you. Your daddy was a killer, too,”
shouted Darnell Summers, a 55-year-old veteran from Detroit.
“This war has nothing to do with ridding Iraq of its
weapons of mass destruction. It has more to do with the strategic interests of
the United States. For us to have our way of life, others must suffer.”
His chant, amplified by a megaphone, sparked dozens of
demonstrators to join in, including fellow veteran Dave Blalock, 53. As members
of the Stop the War Brigade, the veterans were trying to reach out to soldiers
who don’t want to fight.
“The majority of troops we’ve talked to are against a war
with Iraq,” Blalock said. “They say it’s clear that this is about land and
oil.”
Two soldiers in baseball caps engaged German demonstrators
in political discussions, but most soldiers avoided the protest. A few
Americans shopping at the nearby convenience store scurried past.
Passing by, Brian Rausch, a 59-year-old retired lieutenant
colonel who flew Cobra attack helicopters in Vietnam, appeared surprised to
learn that fellow Vietnam veterans were among the demonstrators.
“Everybody’s got a right to an opinion,” Rausch said. “I
just wonder if they’ve read anything about Saddam.”
During the demonstration, the base was mostly a ghost
town. Most soldiers took advantage of a scheduled training holiday Friday. On
Saturday, only a few troops were on duty.
On Thursday evening, USAREUR spokesman Col. Carl Kropf
chatted briefly with Blalock across a waist-high shrubbery.
Blalock told Kropf he wanted to challenge the V Corps
commander, Lt. Gen. William Wallace, to a debate over the war.
Across the street, Lt. Col. Rich Karlsson rested his elbows
on temporary fences his troops set up to blockade the front gate of Campbell
Barracks.
As the local provost marshal, Karlsson said his military
police officers were on hand to make sure the protest remained peaceful.
“But this is basically a show for the [German police],”
Karlsson said. “We couldn’t do this without them.”
Protesters requested permission through the city
government to stage the demonstration. Troops from the 529th Military Police
Company at nearby Patton Barracks were on hand, Karlsson said, alongside a
dozen German police officers. German protesters raised signs to passing traffic
and held candles. One woman sang songs of protest with her guitar. Another
woman, Erika Adams, 64, said, “Bush wants the whole world, like Hitler.”
Still, the American protesters, throwing their fists in
the air and yelling, stood out among the more sedate German activists. Another
American ex-patriot, who goes by G. James, supported the veterans’ efforts.
He’s been in Germany for 33 years. In 1970, he arrived in Europe to assist
soldiers who were against the Vietnam War, he said. He related also future war
in Iraq with Nazi aggression in World War II.
“Now we have hindsight,” he said. “I think of 1939, if we
could have demonstrated here before [German] soldiers invaded Poland.”
On Friday, most soldiers and civilians will be taking
advantage of a scheduled training holiday, Goss said.
By Rick Scavetta ,
Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, March 2, 2003
Rick Scavetta / S&S
Hundreds of protesters march through the streets
of Heidelberg, Germany, behind a banner proclaiming "War is always
terror." They later attempted to link arms in a human chain around U.S. Army
Europe headquarters in Heidelberg.
Rick Scavetta / S&S
Some university students joined the mostly German
protest, writing their signs and shouting anti-war slogans in English.
Rick Scavetta / S&S
Anti-war demonstrators pass Campbell Barracks,
home to U.S Army Europe and V Corps. Their banner reads, in German, "War
is always terror."
HEIDELBERG, Germany — Locking hands, hundreds of German
anti-war protesters Saturday wrapped themselves around much of Campbell
Barracks, headquarters for U.S. Army Europe and V Corps.
The human chain could not completely surround the base’s
approximately 1¼-mile perimeter as some of the adjacent streets that wind
though U.S. housing areas were kept off-limits to demonstrators.
The demonstration was one of several staged Saturday in
Germany and elsewhere around the world.
At 2 p.m., more than 1,000 protesters began marching from
Bismarckplatz, in Heidelberg’s center, south toward Campbell Barracks. Along
the way, they shouted, blew whistles and gained strength. By the time they
reached the headquaraters, their numbers reached 3,500, according to Harald
Kurzer, a Heidelberg police spokesman.
The line of marchers temporarily halted public
transportation as nearly 300 German police kept order, lining the streets and
riding motorcycles around the crowds. There were no injuries or incidents
reported to police, Kurzer said.
At the forefront of the parade, U.S. Army veteran Dave
Blalock and fellow members of the Stop the War Brigade shouted chants
reminiscent of military cadence calls.
“One, two, three, four … we don’t want your bloody war,”
Blalock shouted, pumping one end of a large banner into the air.
“The Germans are against using the bases to support the
war,” Blalock said. “We’re trying to get the word out to soldiers inside that
the war is wrong.”
The anti-war brigade, made up of U.S. and foreign military
veterans, has led several protests outside U.S. bases in Germany over the past
month.
The demonstration brought out all ages. Gray-haired women
marched beside children and baby strollers. While some anti-American sentiment
surfaced, most demonstrators said their oppostion was focused on a possible
U.S.-led attack on Iraq and recent statements by President Bush.
Helga Knaute, 63, who protested deployment of Army
Pershing missiles in the 1980s, said the pending war prompted her to again take
to the streets.
“I’m so disgusted with Mr. Bush,” Knaute said. “Does he
really think he will create democracy by bombing and killing?”
Dozens of other middle-aged and elderly Germans
participated, recalling the protests of the 1960s. Helmut Staudt, 62, first
joined the anti-war movement while studying in the States during Vietnam. He
too criticized the Bush administration.
“Bush is uniting all the Arabs and the Muslim nations
against America,” Staudt said. “It’s unbelievable.”
The demonstration weaved its way passed several unguarded
U.S. housing units. A handful of military police were behind the fences and
barricades on Campbell Barracks.
The Army had warned American soldiers and their families
to steer clear of the base on Saturday, said Sandy Goss, a spokesman for the
Installation Management Agency-Europe Region.
“We recognize their right to free speech and to protest,”
Goss said. “At the same time, we advise our folks to avoid the demonstration.”
Still, many residents of Mark Twain Village, the U.S.
housing area adjacent to Campbell Barracks, lined the street corners or watched
from their windows. Several family members said they are concerned about the
lack of guards at the unfenced community.
Stella Ristom, a German native married to a V Corps
soldier, said the protest brought mixed feelings.“ The German protesters have
to understand our point of view, Ristom said. “We don’t want our husbands to go
to war. But they are in the Army. They’re doing what they are told to. It’s
their duty.”
Meanwhile, in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, up to 2,000
people gathered to protest a possible war against Iraq.
Carrying banners with slogans such as “Stop Bush and save
the world,” and “No blood for oil,” the protesters — mostly youth — gathered on
the city’s main square.
Sinan Alic, the editor of the Front Slobode newspaper,
recalled the horrors Bosnians experienced during the country’s 1992-1995 war.
Such firsthand experience of war, he said, gave them the moral duty to join
worldwide calls for peace.
“Bosnia has to scream now,” Alic said, addressing the crowd.
“We have to express our position. We have to join the anti-war coalition.”
At the same time, Alic stressed that the protest was
neither against the United States nor in favor of Iraq’s President Saddam
Hussein.
“Our resistance toward Bush’s war-machine is not an attack
against America,” he said.
— The Associated Press contributed to this
report.
About 40 protesters rally
in Germany for release of court-martialed pagan GI
Soldier serving seven months after going on work strike
By Steve Mraz ,
Stars and Stripes
European edition, Monday, April 11, 2005
Steve Mraz / S&S
Dave Blalock stands outside Coleman Barracks in
Mannheim, Germany, Sunday afternoon to protest the confinement of Blake
Lemoine.
MANNHEIM, Germany — About 40 protesters gathered outside
Coleman Barracks Sunday afternoon
with the unlikely goal of getting former Army Spc. Blake Lemoine released from his seven-month
sentence at the facility.
The protest, which attracted both Germans and Americans,
was largely peaceful and did not
result in any arrests, as of press time.
German police and U.S. military police were on hand just
in case the event got out of hand.
“Blake Lemoine is literally one of the thousands in the
military who are resisting the war
in Iraq,” said Dave Blalock with Vietnam Veterans Against the War. “We view him as a hero in a sense.
The military should release him. He
served his time in the war.”
In late March, Lemoine, who said he is a pagan priest, was
convicted of willfully disobeying
orders, sentenced to seven months confinement, reduced to the rank of private and given a
bad-conduct discharge. Lemoine voluntarily joined the Army in 2002.
Lemoine, who was with the 596th Maintenance Company on
Kelley Barracks, Germany, testified
in court that from January through February, he decided he would just sit at a desk near the
commander’s office instead of working, a
decision he made after grappling with personal and religious issues
against the war in Iraq.
Lemoine, 23, began a work strike after sending his chain
of command a letter announcing all
the reasons he should be allowed to quit the Army, including his religious beliefs and rituals. The Army
determined that he did not meet the
requirements for conscientious objector status.
During his court-martial, Lemoine explained that while
deployed to Iraq from May 2003 to
May 2004, he realized he did not like working with U.S. Army troops. He claimed that racism is widespread in
the military, with troops encouraged by
command to treat civilian Arabs poorly. He also described several
accounts of animal cruelty and
derogatory name-calling.
Alayna Lemoine, Blake’s wife, attended Sunday’s protest
after visiting her husband for an
hour. Her husband had ended a self-imposed hunger strike, she said.
“He said he’s still fighting for what he believes in even
though he can’t talk to anybody,”
she said.
Darnell Summers directed strong comments and an
anti-military rap toward military
police standing guard at Coleman Barracks.
The MPs declined to comment on the protest.
Summers’ comments were amplified by the public address
system he used.
When asked if he thought Lemoine would be released Sunday
as a result of the protest, Summers
replied: “I don’t know if that’s going to happen or not, but we have to make that demand.”
