by Danny Burridge
On Tuesday October 25, about twenty Ohio University students received a rare and informative glimpse into one of the most overlooked segments of the population of southeastern Ohio- migrant workers.
United Campus Ministries and the Latin American Student Union sponsored a lecture/ discussion led by Humberto Gonzalez, the Regional Administrator for the non-profit organization Rural Opportunity Inc. (ROI). Humberto gave a presentation about his group, which focuses on helping migrant farm workers find permanent employment, and providing social services to the migrant worker communities in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York.
Also present at the discussion were Lucy and Dora, two migrant workers from Oaxaca, Mexico who have been in the United States for two years and have been aided immensely by ROI.
Here in Athens, we are not overly exposed to the world of migrant workers, but right next door in Meiggs County there is a thriving and growing community of migrant workers, primarily from southern Mexico.
Humberto said, “We did not even know there was a migrant camp in Meiggs County. We found them about a year ago and have been working with them ever since.”
He estimated that at any one time there are at least 400-500 migrant workers in the largest camp in Meiggs County. In the county as a whole, he said, there could be close to 1,200. In the state of Ohio, there are about 16,000 migrant workers, half of which are undocumented. By government regulations, ROI is not permitted to provide services to any undocumented workers.
Workers like Lucy and Dora typically stay in Appalachian states like Ohio for the summer and fall seasons. During the fall, many migrant workers work in plant nurseries. During the summer months, they pick vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, and lettuce- typically from sunup to sundown.
Lucy mentioned, “You know its time to stop for the day when you cannot tell if the tomato is ripe or not because it is too dark.”
This was in Spanish, though. A representative from UCM, Kerri Shaw, interpreted for them. Lucy and Dora both expressed the desire to learn English but have no access to any type of classes and probably would not have the time to take them anyway, because of their work schedules.
Very few migrant workers are proficient in English. Not only does this make it difficult for them to get anything but a minimum wage, labor intensive job, but it also makes it almost impossible to integrate fully into U.S. society.
For many Latinos, U.S culture can be quite an obstacle, but at the same time, they take a certain amount of pride in maintaining their own communities and cultures. Humberto, who was a migrant worker for ten years before joining ROI said, “You can put us wherever you want, but you are not going to brainwash us. You are not going to change us. A lot of people try to intimidate us. They say we are taking their jobs. But Americans do not want the jobs we take.”
On the other hand, Lucy and Dora said they have never felt any intimidation from U.S. citizens. Perhaps times have changed since Humberto was a worker and U.S. citizens are treating migrant workers with more respect.
However, migrant workers still face grave conditions as they try to make lives for themselves in the U.S. For this reason, ROI attempts to make it easier for migrant workers tosustain themselves through the National Farm Workers Job Program, which provides job training that migrant workers need to acquire permanent employment in fields such as nursing, early childhood development and retail. ROI also provides social programs dealing with housing, mentoring, drug and alcohol abuse prevention, economic development, and women’s reproductive health. Lucy and Dora have both received benefits from the reproductive health program.
Kerri Shaw worked for ROI for a year and was the person who picked up Lucy for her bi-monthly doctor visits when she was pregnant. Shawwould right now be getting ready to do the same for Dora who is currently five months pregnant, but federal funding for ROI has been drastically cut, causing ROI to drop Shaw’s former position. This year alone, grant money for ROI from the Department of Labor, who is the organization’s largest donor, was cut by $250,000.
Dora has been hitching rides to the medical clinic with various members of the migrant camp. Unfortunately, she has no interpreter such as Kerri to tell her what is truly going on with her pregnancy.
ROI does not only deal directly with migrant workers and communities, but also works to educate and raise awareness about migrant issues in the U.S. Congress and among the farmers who employ the workers. Effectively lobbying Congress is becoming more and more difficult, as shown by ROI‘s funding cut, but farmers have started to become more receptive of working with representatives of ROI.
“They (the farmers) used to think we were trying to bust them for hiring undocumented workers, but now they are starting to realize that we just want to ease their relations with the workers,” said Humberto.
Of late, ROI has been working extensively to try to get farmers to train their workers in the proper use of potentially harmful pesticides and fertilizers. Lucy and Dora said that they were exposed to pesticides during the summer when they worked on the farms, but did not feel any adverse side effects. Many effects of exposure to harmful chemicals are not seen until years after the exposure, so their testimony is not too reassuring.
Agriculture is one of the driving forces of the U.S. economy, and migrant workers are one of the driving forces of Ohio agriculture.
Some of them may not speak English too well, but migrant workers are here to stay, and here to grow. Tuesday’s discussion forged the kind of links between the Latino community and the dominant U.S. community that will be vital in ensuring that these cultures can coexist in mutually beneficial ways.
Showing posts with label Danny Burridge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Danny Burridge. Show all posts
Feb 19, 2008
La Chinatla Journal
by Jimmy & Danny Burridge
This is an excerpt of an email from Jimmy Burridge, who is a volunteer with a Catholic Marianist Mission in La Chinatla, Mexico. La Chinatla is in the southern, impoverished, and highly indigenous state of Vera Cruz. Burridge works specifically with a program which distributes farm animals to needy families. He also gives workshops on gender relationships and baking bread, and tries to grow vegetables.
Things here are about the same as ever, but maybe a little different. I am getting frustrated with the way we work because we are supposed to be promoting development, or changing the way people relate to each other, but I do not think we do that. We are just like a boss that has lots of animals, and we do not actually change anything. We simply enable people to have more animals and thus a slightly larger income.
Also, we do not have any idea how to relate to the indigenous people here. Nearly all of us are mestizos, and we totally lack an understanding of indigenous history, culture, society, and values, which significantly inhibits our ability to work with and for them. If we do not even understand the people that we work for, the reality that they come from, their vision of the world, their dreams, and how they hope to attain those dreams, how are we supposed to help them to help themselves?
I decided that we needed to change and expand the way we work. I set up meetings with some groups in Chiapas because I know that there they have a wealth of organizations that deal with development and indigenous identity. Raymundo, who is one of three indigenous people that work here, and I drove to San Cristobal last Sunday and came back Wednesday. For me, in was reinvigorating to be in that environment again, and for Raymundo, it was totally new. He, like most people in my community, has never been exposed to different ways of seeing the world before.
First, we met up with the sister that was my guide the first time I went through Chiapas. We talked to her about the reality of Chiapas during the 70’s and 80’s. The indigenous people had to work against structural racism, and against the wealthy, white landholders who controlled virtually every aspect of their lives- from the church, to the schools, to the community store.
In 1994, the Zapatistas rebelled and many of the large landowners fled. The peasants occupied the abandoned land, and continue to occupy it today, which is the source of a huge amount of conflict. After the ‘94 rebellion, the landowners formed paramilitary groups which fight and intimidate the peasant groups, and are often backed by the Mexican army and political parties like the IRP (Institutionalized Revolutionary Party).
The next day, we talked with an organization that works almost exclusively with the autonomous municipalities, or the communities in rebellion, or the Zapatista communities. In the years following the rebellion, the Zapatista communities formed their own system of governance. This occurred not only because the Mexican government had historically disrespected and abused them, but because they felt that as indigenous people, they had a different culture and different needs from other Mexicans, and therefore, a right to govern themselves.
Now, the communities are arranged in what they call “juntas de buen gobierno,” (committees of good government). The organization we talked with works through these juntas. A group of people in a community presents a proposal for a project to their local junta, and then the junta presents it to the organization we talked with. So, all the projects stem directly from a popular need of a community.
The next day we talked with a doctor that directs a program which educates and trains indigenous people that have received little or no education. He runs a mechanic shop, a carpentry shop, metal working and sodering instruction, a bakery, and a tortilla factory. He also has a sewing shop, an architecture school, a women’s center and even a university. All the programs are run for and by indigenous people. The programs are not focused on preparing people to go out into the larger world, compete in the job market, and become like any other working Joe, but rather to acquire a trade, become educated and aware of the world, themselves, their culture, and the value of that culture. They are educated to work in their communities for the benefit of their communities. Maybe that does not sound so special, but it is. Many people in Mexico, and even more so in indigenous communities, see the only way to succeed as leaving their community/Mexico to work somewhere else, leaving behind, or even denying their indigenous identity. We have all been sold the idea that it is desirable to have a high paying job in the city, to be able to buy lots of things, in short, to participate fully in the capitalist society. This organization takes a very different view of development, and with other grassroots groups, elements of the Catholic Church and the Zapatistas, is revitalizing indigenous culture and community.
Throughout our stay in Chiapas, we saw people working for a different world- one where people work, live, and relate to one another in better ways- one where people are not caught up in a culture that only values things that are efficient and profitable, and seeks to diminish culture itself into trinkets and folklore that can be bought and sold, or only appreciated as quaint or romantic. Many people have the desire to do away with the dominate culture and create a different one. They think this can and must be done from the bottom up- that initiatives must come from groups, organizations, and communities, traveling from group to group, and spreading knowledge about alternative ways of living and learning.
So that is what I see happening with some of the organizations in Chiapas. I think it’s pretty exciting how these people believe that another world is possible, and that they want to invent this other world that allows us to live and to relate to each other as real human beings.
This is an excerpt of an email from Jimmy Burridge, who is a volunteer with a Catholic Marianist Mission in La Chinatla, Mexico. La Chinatla is in the southern, impoverished, and highly indigenous state of Vera Cruz. Burridge works specifically with a program which distributes farm animals to needy families. He also gives workshops on gender relationships and baking bread, and tries to grow vegetables.
Things here are about the same as ever, but maybe a little different. I am getting frustrated with the way we work because we are supposed to be promoting development, or changing the way people relate to each other, but I do not think we do that. We are just like a boss that has lots of animals, and we do not actually change anything. We simply enable people to have more animals and thus a slightly larger income.
Also, we do not have any idea how to relate to the indigenous people here. Nearly all of us are mestizos, and we totally lack an understanding of indigenous history, culture, society, and values, which significantly inhibits our ability to work with and for them. If we do not even understand the people that we work for, the reality that they come from, their vision of the world, their dreams, and how they hope to attain those dreams, how are we supposed to help them to help themselves?
I decided that we needed to change and expand the way we work. I set up meetings with some groups in Chiapas because I know that there they have a wealth of organizations that deal with development and indigenous identity. Raymundo, who is one of three indigenous people that work here, and I drove to San Cristobal last Sunday and came back Wednesday. For me, in was reinvigorating to be in that environment again, and for Raymundo, it was totally new. He, like most people in my community, has never been exposed to different ways of seeing the world before.
First, we met up with the sister that was my guide the first time I went through Chiapas. We talked to her about the reality of Chiapas during the 70’s and 80’s. The indigenous people had to work against structural racism, and against the wealthy, white landholders who controlled virtually every aspect of their lives- from the church, to the schools, to the community store.
In 1994, the Zapatistas rebelled and many of the large landowners fled. The peasants occupied the abandoned land, and continue to occupy it today, which is the source of a huge amount of conflict. After the ‘94 rebellion, the landowners formed paramilitary groups which fight and intimidate the peasant groups, and are often backed by the Mexican army and political parties like the IRP (Institutionalized Revolutionary Party).
The next day, we talked with an organization that works almost exclusively with the autonomous municipalities, or the communities in rebellion, or the Zapatista communities. In the years following the rebellion, the Zapatista communities formed their own system of governance. This occurred not only because the Mexican government had historically disrespected and abused them, but because they felt that as indigenous people, they had a different culture and different needs from other Mexicans, and therefore, a right to govern themselves.
Now, the communities are arranged in what they call “juntas de buen gobierno,” (committees of good government). The organization we talked with works through these juntas. A group of people in a community presents a proposal for a project to their local junta, and then the junta presents it to the organization we talked with. So, all the projects stem directly from a popular need of a community.
The next day we talked with a doctor that directs a program which educates and trains indigenous people that have received little or no education. He runs a mechanic shop, a carpentry shop, metal working and sodering instruction, a bakery, and a tortilla factory. He also has a sewing shop, an architecture school, a women’s center and even a university. All the programs are run for and by indigenous people. The programs are not focused on preparing people to go out into the larger world, compete in the job market, and become like any other working Joe, but rather to acquire a trade, become educated and aware of the world, themselves, their culture, and the value of that culture. They are educated to work in their communities for the benefit of their communities. Maybe that does not sound so special, but it is. Many people in Mexico, and even more so in indigenous communities, see the only way to succeed as leaving their community/Mexico to work somewhere else, leaving behind, or even denying their indigenous identity. We have all been sold the idea that it is desirable to have a high paying job in the city, to be able to buy lots of things, in short, to participate fully in the capitalist society. This organization takes a very different view of development, and with other grassroots groups, elements of the Catholic Church and the Zapatistas, is revitalizing indigenous culture and community.
Throughout our stay in Chiapas, we saw people working for a different world- one where people work, live, and relate to one another in better ways- one where people are not caught up in a culture that only values things that are efficient and profitable, and seeks to diminish culture itself into trinkets and folklore that can be bought and sold, or only appreciated as quaint or romantic. Many people have the desire to do away with the dominate culture and create a different one. They think this can and must be done from the bottom up- that initiatives must come from groups, organizations, and communities, traveling from group to group, and spreading knowledge about alternative ways of living and learning.
So that is what I see happening with some of the organizations in Chiapas. I think it’s pretty exciting how these people believe that another world is possible, and that they want to invent this other world that allows us to live and to relate to each other as real human beings.
Anti-War Movement Takes New Direction
by Danny Burridge
On Wednesday October 19, a delegation from the Pittsburgh Organizing Group (POG) came to Athens to give a presentation about the group’s campaign against military recruitment, which has achieved remarkable success in Pittsburgh over the past six months.
The event was sponsored by local progressive groups Positive Action, InterAct and the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition. The groups hoped the presentation would spark interest in, and give guidance to the counter recruitment campaign, which will be starting in Athens on November 2 in conjunction with the nationwide “World Can’t Wait: Drive Out the Bush Regime” movement.
Damon Krane, who coordinated POG’s visit for InterAct, explained: “InterAct is always trying to network with progressive activists from around the region. I’m originally from Pittsburgh. My brother Justin is a member of POG. So we’ve been following POG’s efforts for a while now. We were very impressed with what we saw in Pittsburgh and decided Athens activists could learn some valuable lessons from POG’s counter recruitment campaign.”
About 50 Ohio University students and Athens community members attended the presentation. It was followed by a lively discussion amongst all participants about the prospective obstacles and achievements of the Counter Recruitment Movement.
POG is a democratically governed group which promotes systemic change as a vehicle towards affecting economic and political justice in a global context. It was represented at this presentation by mem
bers: Alex Bradley, Marie Skoczylas, De’Anna Caliguiri, Justin Krane, and David Meieran.
POG has been involved in many anti-war actions, but in the past six months, it has concentrated its anti-war efforts on counter recruitment. This has entailed picketing in front of Pittsburgh military recruiting centers and actually shutting them down, thereby physically impeding U.S. citizens from being recruited.
During the pre sentation, the POG representatives provided the back-
ground and rationale behind the growing nationwide counter recruitment movement, as well as the impressive successes, harsh brutalities, and information war that has accompanied the specific counter recruitment campaign that POG has enacted in Pittsburgh.
In regard to the rationale of counter recruitment, De’Anna Caligiuri said, “Counter Recruitment is a way to be direct. I was tired of just holding a sign and crossing my fingers, hoping that things would change. Counter recruitment localizes the war issue, and actually limits recruiters’ access to students. If everyone participates in getting recruitment to stop, the movement will be effective.”
Throughout the night, POG representatives reiterated the idea that counter recruitment is a tangible way to combat the war. As Alex Bradley stated, “If the military cannot recruit new soldiers, the U.S. government cannot continue its war-based foreign policy.”
The military has missed its recruiting quota for 2005 by 25,000 soldiers, and according to the POG representatives, this shows that counter recruitment campaigns have already been a successful deterrent to the war effort.
Pittsburgh organizers also said that the effectiveness of counter recruitment can be clearly seen in the brutality, repression, and information manipulation that it has been met with as it becomes more influential and visible.
POG feels that anti-war activists that just hold signs, chant, and resign themselves to designated areas are too easily marginalized and ignored by police and policy makers. Counter recruitment activists, on the other hand, have unfortunately become the target of deplorable acts of police repression.
POG has had first hand experience with this.
On August 20, 2005 POG led a march down a main Pittsburgh street which culminated in a protest in front of the Pittsburgh military recruitment center. The center had already been closed down in anticipation of the protest.
Various cameramen, and other media representatives were on the scene, and one cameraman (later revealed to be employed by Fox News), accused a protester of hitting him. Police officers tried to arrest the alleged assailant, but he resisted and a violent scuffle ensued. This resulted in numerous arrests and the use of Taser stun-guns on two protesters. One was Caligiuri, who was Tased for an appalling 14 seconds. This barbaric scene was captured on camera by Athens filmmaker and activist, Roger Hill. Later that day, a sixty-eight year old woman was bitten by a police dog when police demanded that the sidewalk in front of the recruiting center be cleared.
Unfortunately, Caligiuri’s story and that of other Pittsburg activists is not unique. Counter recruitment activists all over the country have felt the heavy arm of the law coming down on them.
On September 29, 2005 at Holyoke Community College in Massachusetts, Charles Peterson, the Vice President of the college’s student senate and an outspoken war critic, was peppered sprayed and kicked off the campus for allegedly “grabbing and bruising an officer’s arm.” He was subsequently allowed to return to campus amid large student protests.
On the same day at George Mason University, a former Air Force pilot and current student at the university, Tarik Khan, was brutally assaulted by a police officer and a university assistant. Khan was tackled, put in a chokehold, and possibly subjected to other violence simply for standing next to a recruiting table with a sign taped to his shirt which said: “Recruiters lie; Don’t be deceived.” He is currently facing criminal charges.
Counter recruitment efforts have also been the object of what David Meieran called “information warfare.” He gave many examples in written publications and television news coverage which showed a distinct bias against counter recruitment activists. Meieran showed one news clip from a Pittsburgh network that focused on the plight of Samuel Muoio, the police officer who used his Taser stun-gun on Caligiuri. Muoio said he feared for the lives of himself and his family because his name and address had been posted to an online independent news outlet (Pittsburgh Indy Media www.pittsburgh.indymedia.org). No heed was paid to the violent and unwarranted act he had committed which had garnered him such attention.
POG representatives also stated that the counter recruitment campaign is not just about direct action, but educational efforts as well. They provide potential recruits, such as high school students, with information regarding the harsh realities of military enlistment. On their flyers, POG states that only 35% of soldiers get any GI bill money, and only 15% of soldiers actually receive a college degree. Especially frightening is the fact that 75% of women who join the military are subjected to sexual harassment. Also, there is a caveat attached to enlistment papers that states that the government does not have to follow up on any promises made by recruiters to enlistees.
The response by attendants to the POG presentation was very positive. Freshman Emily Hanlon said, “It was really inspiring to see so many people actually affecting change through counter recruitment. I protested in Washington D.C., but that was symbolic. This is direct action.” Lizzy Sullivan, also a freshman, echoed the same sentiments. When asked if she would participate in the counter recruitment efforts in Athens on November 2 she responded, “Definitely. I want to be involved with this movement. It is very important.”
Two weeks after POG’s presentation, the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition launched its local counter recruitment campaign with a march from OU’s College Green, down Court Street, to the Athen’s recruitment center at 25 Grosvenor St. With roughly 200 participants, the demonstration was the largest anti-war rally since the US invaded Iraq on March 19, 2003.
The atmosphere was electric as the march reached the center. A lone counter-protestor, Athens resident Monika Gasztonyi, awaited the group’s arrival. Gasztonyi physically barred the door of the recruitment center, waved the U.S. flag, and held signs that said such things as “U.S. Military: Duty, Honor, Country: You? Selfish SWINE.”
The protestors were not deterred. They formed a semi-circle around the recruitment center chanting slogans such as “Shut it down No recruiters in our town.”
Numerous people spoke, among them Associate Professor of Cultural Studies in Education at OU Jaylynne Hutchinson, former OU professor and World War II and Korean War veteran Chuck Overby, and peace activist Peggy Gish, who has spent much of the past three years working in Iraq.
The recruiting center itself did not shut down, but protestors certainly made enough commotion over the course of the two hour protest to keep the office from doing much recruiting. The event has also created a strong buzz in the Athens media about counter recruitment and the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition.
Jordan Rogoff, the liaison between Athens and the national office of World Can’t Wait said: “The Athens Can’t Wait Coalition is committed to opposing the Bush Regime, and counter recruitment efforts are a way to do that on the ground level. Counter recruitment will be one of our major focuses in the months to come.”
On Wednesday October 19, a delegation from the Pittsburgh Organizing Group (POG) came to Athens to give a presentation about the group’s campaign against military recruitment, which has achieved remarkable success in Pittsburgh over the past six months.
The event was sponsored by local progressive groups Positive Action, InterAct and the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition. The groups hoped the presentation would spark interest in, and give guidance to the counter recruitment campaign, which will be starting in Athens on November 2 in conjunction with the nationwide “World Can’t Wait: Drive Out the Bush Regime” movement.
Damon Krane, who coordinated POG’s visit for InterAct, explained: “InterAct is always trying to network with progressive activists from around the region. I’m originally from Pittsburgh. My brother Justin is a member of POG. So we’ve been following POG’s efforts for a while now. We were very impressed with what we saw in Pittsburgh and decided Athens activists could learn some valuable lessons from POG’s counter recruitment campaign.”
About 50 Ohio University students and Athens community members attended the presentation. It was followed by a lively discussion amongst all participants about the prospective obstacles and achievements of the Counter Recruitment Movement.
POG is a democratically governed group which promotes systemic change as a vehicle towards affecting economic and political justice in a global context. It was represented at this presentation by mem
bers: Alex Bradley, Marie Skoczylas, De’Anna Caliguiri, Justin Krane, and David Meieran.POG has been involved in many anti-war actions, but in the past six months, it has concentrated its anti-war efforts on counter recruitment. This has entailed picketing in front of Pittsburgh military recruiting centers and actually shutting them down, thereby physically impeding U.S. citizens from being recruited.
During the pre sentation, the POG representatives provided the back-
ground and rationale behind the growing nationwide counter recruitment movement, as well as the impressive successes, harsh brutalities, and information war that has accompanied the specific counter recruitment campaign that POG has enacted in Pittsburgh.
In regard to the rationale of counter recruitment, De’Anna Caligiuri said, “Counter Recruitment is a way to be direct. I was tired of just holding a sign and crossing my fingers, hoping that things would change. Counter recruitment localizes the war issue, and actually limits recruiters’ access to students. If everyone participates in getting recruitment to stop, the movement will be effective.”
Throughout the night, POG representatives reiterated the idea that counter recruitment is a tangible way to combat the war. As Alex Bradley stated, “If the military cannot recruit new soldiers, the U.S. government cannot continue its war-based foreign policy.”
The military has missed its recruiting quota for 2005 by 25,000 soldiers, and according to the POG representatives, this shows that counter recruitment campaigns have already been a successful deterrent to the war effort.
Pittsburgh organizers also said that the effectiveness of counter recruitment can be clearly seen in the brutality, repression, and information manipulation that it has been met with as it becomes more influential and visible.
POG feels that anti-war activists that just hold signs, chant, and resign themselves to designated areas are too easily marginalized and ignored by police and policy makers. Counter recruitment activists, on the other hand, have unfortunately become the target of deplorable acts of police repression.
POG has had first hand experience with this.
On August 20, 2005 POG led a march down a main Pittsburgh street which culminated in a protest in front of the Pittsburgh military recruitment center. The center had already been closed down in anticipation of the protest.
Various cameramen, and other media representatives were on the scene, and one cameraman (later revealed to be employed by Fox News), accused a protester of hitting him. Police officers tried to arrest the alleged assailant, but he resisted and a violent scuffle ensued. This resulted in numerous arrests and the use of Taser stun-guns on two protesters. One was Caligiuri, who was Tased for an appalling 14 seconds. This barbaric scene was captured on camera by Athens filmmaker and activist, Roger Hill. Later that day, a sixty-eight year old woman was bitten by a police dog when police demanded that the sidewalk in front of the recruiting center be cleared.
Unfortunately, Caligiuri’s story and that of other Pittsburg activists is not unique. Counter recruitment activists all over the country have felt the heavy arm of the law coming down on them.
On September 29, 2005 at Holyoke Community College in Massachusetts, Charles Peterson, the Vice President of the college’s student senate and an outspoken war critic, was peppered sprayed and kicked off the campus for allegedly “grabbing and bruising an officer’s arm.” He was subsequently allowed to return to campus amid large student protests.
On the same day at George Mason University, a former Air Force pilot and current student at the university, Tarik Khan, was brutally assaulted by a police officer and a university assistant. Khan was tackled, put in a chokehold, and possibly subjected to other violence simply for standing next to a recruiting table with a sign taped to his shirt which said: “Recruiters lie; Don’t be deceived.” He is currently facing criminal charges.
Counter recruitment efforts have also been the object of what David Meieran called “information warfare.” He gave many examples in written publications and television news coverage which showed a distinct bias against counter recruitment activists. Meieran showed one news clip from a Pittsburgh network that focused on the plight of Samuel Muoio, the police officer who used his Taser stun-gun on Caligiuri. Muoio said he feared for the lives of himself and his family because his name and address had been posted to an online independent news outlet (Pittsburgh Indy Media www.pittsburgh.indymedia.org). No heed was paid to the violent and unwarranted act he had committed which had garnered him such attention.
POG representatives also stated that the counter recruitment campaign is not just about direct action, but educational efforts as well. They provide potential recruits, such as high school students, with information regarding the harsh realities of military enlistment. On their flyers, POG states that only 35% of soldiers get any GI bill money, and only 15% of soldiers actually receive a college degree. Especially frightening is the fact that 75% of women who join the military are subjected to sexual harassment. Also, there is a caveat attached to enlistment papers that states that the government does not have to follow up on any promises made by recruiters to enlistees.
The response by attendants to the POG presentation was very positive. Freshman Emily Hanlon said, “It was really inspiring to see so many people actually affecting change through counter recruitment. I protested in Washington D.C., but that was symbolic. This is direct action.” Lizzy Sullivan, also a freshman, echoed the same sentiments. When asked if she would participate in the counter recruitment efforts in Athens on November 2 she responded, “Definitely. I want to be involved with this movement. It is very important.”
Two weeks after POG’s presentation, the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition launched its local counter recruitment campaign with a march from OU’s College Green, down Court Street, to the Athen’s recruitment center at 25 Grosvenor St. With roughly 200 participants, the demonstration was the largest anti-war rally since the US invaded Iraq on March 19, 2003.
The atmosphere was electric as the march reached the center. A lone counter-protestor, Athens resident Monika Gasztonyi, awaited the group’s arrival. Gasztonyi physically barred the door of the recruitment center, waved the U.S. flag, and held signs that said such things as “U.S. Military: Duty, Honor, Country: You? Selfish SWINE.”
The protestors were not deterred. They formed a semi-circle around the recruitment center chanting slogans such as “Shut it down No recruiters in our town.”
Numerous people spoke, among them Associate Professor of Cultural Studies in Education at OU Jaylynne Hutchinson, former OU professor and World War II and Korean War veteran Chuck Overby, and peace activist Peggy Gish, who has spent much of the past three years working in Iraq.
The recruiting center itself did not shut down, but protestors certainly made enough commotion over the course of the two hour protest to keep the office from doing much recruiting. The event has also created a strong buzz in the Athens media about counter recruitment and the Athens Can’t Wait Coalition.
Jordan Rogoff, the liaison between Athens and the national office of World Can’t Wait said: “The Athens Can’t Wait Coalition is committed to opposing the Bush Regime, and counter recruitment efforts are a way to do that on the ground level. Counter recruitment will be one of our major focuses in the months to come.”
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