Students protest U.S. bombs in weekend rally

Oberlin community angry at U.S. stance on Iraq

Approximately six Oberlin students, independent of any specific campus group, organized a rally for people wishing to protest U.S. foreign policy makers' recent threats to bomb Iraq.

Several Oberlin students attended the government-sponsored town meeting at Ohio State University Feb. 18 in which top U.S. foreign policy officials tried to convince an angry public that bombing Iraq was the right solution. Saturday's rally was students' attempt to bring the protests closer to home.

For first-year Juliana Keen, one of the rally's organizers, the rationale behind the rally was simple. "I just think there's always a peaceful alternative," she said.

Despite the cold and a temporary microphone malfunction nearly 100 students, faculty and town residents came to voice their anger over the impending U.S. air strikes. Some held signs saying, "Iraqi people are not responsible for Saddam Hussein," "Bombs don't stop bombs" and "Iraqi children pay with their lives! No blood for oil!" One community members held up a banner simply reading, "Peace."

"This rally is really something special," junior Chuckie Kamm, one of the organizers, said to the growing crowd. "As of a couple of days ago all we had were a few posters around campus. Now there's this energy running through the community and we're saying, 'this war can't be shoved down our throats.'"

Kamm told the crowd about the recent efforts of United Nations (U.N.) Secretary-General Kofi Annan to negotiate a peaceful solution with Hussein in Baghdad.

At the time of the rally it was unknown whether Annan's efforts toward peace would be successful. On Monday Annan negotiated a deal with Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister which will allow U.N. officials to inspect Iraqi weapon sites accompanied by Iraqi diplomats.

Professor of Politics Benjamin Schiff then took the platform to provide protesters with background as well as current information about the U.S.-Iraq situation.

"There are a lot of really good reasons not to trust Saddam Hussein," Schiff said. He said that bombing Iraq, however, is not an effective means of eliminating Hussein's weapons threat. "Bombing will tend to hurt innocent Iraqi citizens without any assurance of Hussein's removal from office, though it may delay his nuclear weapons manufacturing," he said.

Although Schiff invited crowd members to ask questions about the U.S.-Iraq situation specifically, some students seemed to be more interested in learning about effective means of protest.

"Are there any lessons we can learn from the Vietnam War protests?" one student asked.

Schiff said, "The more noise the better."

The crowd responded by chanting, "One, two, three, four, we don't want your racist war." Other chants throughout the two-and-a-half hour rally included, "From Baghdad to Oberlin, it's right to rebel, Nazi war mongers, go to hell" and "Another war in Iraq? What to do? Act up, fight back."

Junior Sarah Park, another of the rally's organizers, took the platform to voice her views on the bomb threats.

"I disagree with the whole logic of using war as a game in policies with other countries," Park said. "I don't know if I understand all the issues but my gut reaction is, this is wrong. I think Americans are looking for answers. People aren't sure if this is right."

Town resident Gerri McNam told the crowd that some U.S. officials were also opposed to taking military action against Iraq. She read a letter she'd received from Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in response to her phone call advocating a peaceful resolution to the U.S.-Iraq conflict.

In his letter Brown said, "I'm inclined to oppose the use of military force in Iraq unless the President makes a compelling statement for it."

First-year Emily Andrews, a member of Oberlin's International Socialist Organization, spoke out against U.S.-imposed sanctions on Iraq.

"It's the sanctions that have denied children food, medical care and other survival needs," Andrews said. "500,000 Iraqi children have died since the Gulf War at a rate of 200 per day. This seems like the real crime to me."

Sophomore Angela Migally told the crowd about the race issues involved in the military conflicts. "There are very few Arab-Americans who go to Oberlin and I am one of them. I want to say that this is really a racist war," she said. "When was the last time you saw America bombing anyone who wasn't brown?"

As Migally spoke a passenger in a nearby car shouted, "Bomb Saddam!"

Migally used this as an example to illustrate her point. "People think every Arab is Saddam Hussein," she said.

Kamm concluded the rally by saying, "I feel solidarity with a lot of Iraqis today. I feel worried for them and concerned for what may happen to them in the next few days. I'm proud to be an American but I'm not proud that our government is about to launch into a grotesque and egregious mistake."

Kamm emphasized the need for protesters to make their voices known to Washington officials. "We need to say, 'we're not going to bomb Iraq. We're not going to kill innocent civilians for our mistake.'"

Although those who spoke Saturday were against bombing Iraq, not all audience members left the rally convinced.

Sophomore Jessica Powers said she didn't foresee the U.S. being able to avoid taking military action.

"What if someday Saddam Hussein uses chemical weapons and creates a huge war?" Powers said. "I don't think this is about oil. It's about millions of people, not just in Iraq, who are affected by this. It's about race, about the abuse of power. I'm not sure that dropping a bomb is an effective solution. I hope so much that peaceful negotiations work, but I just don't think they will. And then what?"

Speaking out: Many Oberlin students, faculty members and town residents gathered at the edge of Tappan square Saturday to protest U.S. officials' stance on bombing Iraq. The protest attracted the attention of passersby and a local television news crew. (photo by Mike Kabakoff)