Cindy Sheehan: Grannies do Heavy Lifting, Literally

[babylonsister]

Posted with permission in its entirety.

Grannies do Heavy Lifting, Literally
Cindy Sheehan

My dear friend, Diane Baker, from Dallas-Ft. Worth who is a United Church of Christ Minister and fearless crusader for peace is also a grandmother, has a degenerative disease, and was sweeping garbage in DC for being arrested there this past October protesting the illegal and immoral war in Iraq: to save your children and the children of Iraq.

Three grandmas are going to Federal Prison for 1-3 months each for protesting the inhumane and horrifically criminal School of the Americas at Ft. Benning, Ga. They compromised the fence line protesting how the SOA (School of Assassins) training of murderers who oppress, torture and kill people all over the world...even throwing in a few South American dictators here and there. They did it to save your children and the children of the world.

My "grannies' in the Granny Peace Brigade get arrested over and over again all over the country trying to enlist in the US military to save your children and the children of Iraq.

Diane was sentenced to eight hours of sweeping trash in DC; which is a filthy city, but the trash that needs to be taken out resides in the White House. Diane was doing what each and every American has the right and the moral duty to do: she was exercising her First Amendment freedoms and her obligation to dissent against an out of control government. The "compassionate" judge ordered Diane, who is obviously physically challenged by her disease, to do this community service in freezing weather. Diane's entire life is community service to her country and to her patients in the hospice where she lovingly helps people go to the other side.

War is peace; hate is love; injustice is justice; indifference is compassion and this country is seriously upside down from over six years of an administration that thinks that good things are happening in a country where their policies have killed almost a million people and a "president" that goes to Wall Street to congratulate the only people who are benefit ting from his tax cuts and war for profit.

The members of Congress who role into their comfortable offices from hired cars and walk between their offices and the Congress building in underground tunnels in the oppressive heat of summer, or the dire cold of winter; are contemplating weak and cowardly measures for only symbolic opposition to a war that is killing the children of the sinking middle class in this country and the brown, non-Christian, non-English speaking children of Iraq. The people in the US who have everything to lose are allowing Congress to be complicit in the war crimes of BushCo.

The people of the US are also allowing Grannies to do the heavy lifting and hard work and prison time for us all. These wonderfully brave and committed women should be home playing and spoiling their own grandchildren, but they are putting their tired and sometimes diseased bodies on the line for yours.

Beginning on Monday, February 5th, the Occupation Project is beginning sit-ins in every House Rep and Senator's offices across this nation to demand an end to the war in Iraq by voting "nay" to giving any more money to BushCo for their murderous war.
Join the Occupation. Put your body on the line like these brave Grandmas have and as our brave, tired, and deceived soldiers do everyday for BushCo's lies.

Do it for all the children.



Cindy Sheehan is the mother of Spc. Casey Sheehan who was killed in Bush's war of terror on 04/04/04.
She is the co-founder and president of Gold Star Families for Peace and the Camp Casey Peace Institute.
She is the author of three books, the most recent is: Peace Mom: A Mother's Journey Through Heartache
to Activism.

[BuyingThyme]

1. kcik

[Marrah_G]

2. Not all of us are in the position to do so.

I am a single mother of 3. Were I to be arrested my children's lives would be ruined. I am glad that those who have the ability to make a statement are, but not all of us are able to.

[Robbien]

3. We can all support the effort in our own way

Just taking the time to stop by the sit-in and give the protesters a few words of support goes a long way.

[Decruiter]

4. Diane says what you say. We each do what we can when we can.

There are many of us that can't afford to be arrested for many different reasons. So we help in other ways doing what we can and there are lots of different needs to be met.

That said....

When I read the account of Diane's sentence I was outraged. Diane is very frail and her "punishment" was cruel and extreme The thought of "our" Diane having to spend eight hours on the streets of DC in freezing weather, dragging a garbage pail, picking up trash off the streets, renders me speechless and quite honestly sends me to my knees in tears. I wish I could have been there helping her. The judge deserves admonition, IMVHO, along with loads of public criticism and condemnation. Diane arrived in DC just in time to take part in Saturday's march straight off of a flight from a trip to Chiapas.

I'm hoping the group I'm involved with will write some formal letter of condemnation, she was named the Dallas Peace Center Peacemaker of the Year for 2006. Cindy Sheehan was honored by the Dallas Peace Center for her work in 2005. www.dallaspeacecenter.org

Peace

[midnight]

5. Women usually do the brunt of the clean up in this world.

Time for congress to help in this clean up. End this illigal war, and protect the citizens for the abuse that comes their way when apposing these lies.

[robinlynne]

6. If it were here in LA, I would gladly do the work for her. Are there any Duers in washington who

can go and help her? If several people were there with her, helping, buying her hot tea, holding the broom, I think the sentence would feel much lighter.

[Decruiter]

8. Diane completed her sentence and is home now. n/t

I'm sure though she is thinking about finding a way to occupy Kay Bailey Hutchinson's Dallas office in the coming weeks.

[Luckyduck]

7. K&R

Love Cindy & the Grannies!
:toast:

and this is a great idea!

Beginning on Monday, February 5th, the Occupation Project is beginning sit-ins in every House Rep and Senator's offices across this nation to demand an end to the war in Iraq by voting "nay" to giving any more money to BushCo for their murderous war.

[Decruiter]

9. Update from DailyKos

"...It was the U.S. Attorney General's office in D.C. that decided the sentence not the judge. He said that judge was very kind. The Attorney General's office would no negotiate or consider letting Diane do counseling at a hospice or returning veterans or anything. They said it was picking up trash or trial.

She did not actually cross a police line. She saw some people sitting down and went to sit with them. Her husband assured me that this is not the point because she would have crossed the police line given the opportunity.

When I called, Diane was napping before she left for Dallas to protest in from of Kay Bailey Hutchinson's office as she does "every Friday at 4:00 pm rain, shine or snow."

I should hope to have as much courage as this woman some day."

www.dailykos.com/story/2007/2/2/85223/12075