Vigil Report, October 26, 2005

Dear Vigilers,

Heartfelt thanks and appreciation to all who turned out for the special solemn vigil in honor of the 2000 of our soldiers who have died in Iraq, all of our soldiers who have served there, and the thousands of Iraquis who have died in the crossfire in this misbegotten war. Special thanks to Rev. Sarah Clark, who arranged for us to use First Parish Church and who conducted such a simple, moving call for peace, and to all those who rose to express their own deep thoughts on the many deaths and their hopes for peace. There was a very nice turnout, which included members of the press. I was interviewed for WATD, but don't know when it will be aired.

It was a very moving experience.

Peace,

Ted

2000

The sad, but seemingly inevitable death of the 2000th soldier in Iraq was announced by the U.S. military today - Tuesday, October 25th.

As previously announced, and discussed in the posting just previous to this one (below) a special vigil will be held tomorrow (Wednesday) at 6:30 p.m., in the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church in Plymouth, on Leyden Street (downtown).

Please also contact your friends and associates - being careful not to offend anyone who is opposed to these efforts, and invite them to participate.

For further information, please contact the Curtins, using the information listed on the blog's description, to your left. Note also that a MoveOn-sponsored vigil listing has been established.

Vigil Report: October 19, 2005

Dear Friends,

Thanks to the twenty people who attended this evening. We all missed Ted who is recovering from tangling with a great dane though still in a lot of pain.

We were met in town square by Robert Knox, reporting for the Boston Globe South, along with his photographer. Mr. Knox interviewed a number of the participants.
In my conversation with him, I emphasized the absolute silence of our vigil and our agreement not to verbally confront the members of the "Support Our Troops" group which assembles at the same time at the Post Office. I was disappointed that both of these agreements were broken this evening by some participants. We were delighted that some brought friends with them, but it's necessary to emphasize to them the silent nature of our vigil, which was clearly announced before we proceeded.

At a gathering in the square following our vigil there was discussion of the observance of the 2,000th soldier death in Iraq: some of us are not in favor of this and we respect your choice not to participate. Those choosing to participate discussed the suggested lighting of candles. It was agreed the most practical way to do this was as suggested by Rev. Sarah Clark...that twenty of us stand with large candles behind a sign reading "Each of these candles represents 100 soldier deaths in the Iraq War". If you are able to be one of these twenty people, please volunteer as soon as possible. As outlined previously, on the day following the announcement of the 2,000th death in Iraq we will gather in front of First Parish Church in Town Square at 6:30 in the evening, with the candles and any signs we wish to carry. We will then process into the church for the peaceful observance of the event, which will include appropriate readings and meditations. Your suggestions are welcome.

Hopefully Ted will be back to lead us next Wednesday at 6:30. See you there.

In Peace,
Grace Curtin
(photo courtesy of Irene Caldwell)

Vigil report, Oct. 12, 2005

Despite the threatening weather, we went down to the square in case anyone showed up. A few did, and since it wasn't raining, and the wind was fairly mild, we decided to stay a while. As we approached M&M corner, a few of our companion demonstrators appeared at the Post Office and took up their station. they waved fistfuls of small American flags and carried a Service flag and a Marine Corps flag, plus a "Honk if you Support the troops" placard.
We stayed quietly at that corner until 7:15, when we adjourned, having had some supporting waves and even toots, and no adverse comments. It appeared that the other group was being interviewed by someone as we left.
Looking forward hopefully to better weather, but preparing warm clothes for next week. Hope to see you then.

Ted

Visibility?

Look to Heidi Mayo's picture from the last vigil for an important lesson: easily discerned by you, and probably by passerby during the actual vigil, are the bold peace sign tee-shirts, and the large lettering on the "PEACE" sign. Whatever we do, wherever we go, we should focus on that kind of visibility. Especially as we seem to agree on the importance of a quiet, non-confrontational procession, easily understood symbols are key to our effectiveness. We want to be seen, not heard.

Of course I understand that everyone has a personal story, a unique perspective on peace, and the other progressive issues of the day. But I think we should quiet our individual voices for the sake of the overall effectiveness of our gatherings.

I personally don't want anyone to honk for me, my sign, or my beliefs. I know too well how little is gained from what they call 'visibility' as it is normally practiced during poltical rallies. What I hope we could impress people with, to some small degree, is our quiet determination. Peace, I think, cannot be won, or secured, or accomplished: it is something that you simply have to accept, to allow, to permit. This quiet, consistent, symbolic vigil in its own way is granting permission for others to do the same.

Frank

RE: Vigil Report, Oct. 4, 2005

I worked late and was unable to attend. I think we should keep with our
route, not be frightened off by others. Perhaps a few honk for peace signs
will be one non-violent way to balance out the other honk signs! I have to
admit an hour is a long time for me to stand, so I may join for a half hour
rather than an hour. Sorry but I do have to pay attention to my body, and
long standing is difficult for it.

Peace, Sarah

standing together

Here's a picture of gathering last night.

The funniest thing about those "counter protesters" is that we agree with them - we support the troops, so we really were all standing together! It was hard to hold silence when this mother yelled that her son was in Iraq. The discussion would go something like this, "You want peace, don't you? Doesn't everyone?" On this we can all agree.

Outside the ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field.
I'll meet you there.
(Rumi)

Heidi www.peacethings.com

Vigil Report, Oct. 4, 2005

Dear Friends,

 

It's been a beautiful, "soft" night. Twelve of us gathered at the Town Square at 6:30.

 

As we prepared to step out, a group of people waving "Support our Troops" placards gathered on the corner in front of the Post Office. We decided to proceed directly to Shirley Square without pausing at M&M Sports corner, so as to distance ourselves from possible confrontation. As always, we processed and demonstrated in complete silence. Again we got many approving waves and toots from passing cars.

 

One pedestrian passed behind us three times, muttering something about 9/11.

 

At 7:15 we processed to the corner of Leyden St. across from where the other group still stood. We had no exchange with them, though they occasionally yelled slogans. A few of their signs say, "Honk for our Troops," which brought many responses. One older driver of a pickup waited until the light changed, then turned on his stereo with the Green Beret song as he drove past us.

 

All of us remained silent throughout, which most seem to feel is the serious, dignified, PEACEFUL appearance we want to convey, since we are a vigil for Peace and Justice.

 

Some of us adjourned afterwards to Bella Piazza, a small restaurant/coffee shop near the corner, and discussed our progress and tactics. While some favor a move to another location, to distance ourselves from the other group, others are for holding our place in quiet vigil, no matter what they do. We'll check out the lighting situation in some other high traffic spots before next week.

 

If you have any ideas or suggestions in this regard, please chime in

 

Sincerely, in Peace,

 

Ted

Peace Protest in Washington D.C.

My spouse and I stayed with friends in Queens on Friday night. We met our DC bound bus at 6:00 AM on Saturday. Thousands of peach marchers boarded buses from a dozens of locations in NY. Our bus rode around the march site prior to dropping us off so we were able to observe the lay of the land and see buses from from as far away as Alabama, West Virginia, Michigan and others.

It was an awe inspiring experience being with so many people speaking out for peace and justice and standing proudly together to send a message to the Bush regime.

One of the first things to catch our attention was a cemetery set up by Cindy Sheehan's group. Among the white crosses were pairs of combat boots with names (some had pictures) of soldiers who died in this unjust war.

One word about counter protest marchers; all fifty or sixty of them were scattered along the sidewalk in their assigned counter demonstration spot.

Peace marchers got verbal especially when they reached the front of the White House shouting 'SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!', 'MY HOUSE NOT YOURS', etc. There were sharp shooters on the roof of the White House, one was in a crouching position with his rifle pointed at us. They, like the counter protesters, provided comic relief.

Jeanne OBrien

(This post was transferred from an email message, and included many more pics of the protest in D.C. I will endeavor to post more, and to provide other means of viewing these images. Frank Mand)