Citizens need to be heard when war is on the table

I am one of a group of people who have maintained a weekly vigil against war in Iraq since August 2002, about 6 1/2 years. Today will be our last time, at least for a while, at the corner of 14th and Peachtree.

Not all of us are ready to suspend this action. That we don’t fully agree with each other might surprise some people who have observed us over these years. This is partly why I’m writing about our experiences.

Speaking for myself, I got off George Bush’s campaign to make war soon after he began to talk about an “Axis of Evil.” I know history well enough to understand that Iraq, Iran and North Korea do not form an axis, though they sometimes pull in the same direction. This was weak justification for a big war — or for any war. I grew angrier during the summer of 2002 and said, “I’m an old guy, and I’ve got to do something!”

I served in the Navy years ago and supposed that being a veteran might give me some credibility. When I learned about plans to visit the offices of our Georgia senators on the last Friday of August that year, I was one of those who visited former Sen. Max Cleland’s office, where we were received politely, even sympathetically.

Sen. Zell Miller, whose office was on the third floor of Colony Square, persistently refused to receive us. This was the reason we began to convene at that corner every Friday at noon. In October 2002, five of our members were arrested for sitting in at Miller’s office to try to get his attention. If this is the home of the brave, it didn’t quite seem to be the land of the free.

Since I had little experience, I didn’t know what to expect. You learn quickly that you’d better have thick skin. You get “fingerized” regularly. But the call to “Get a job!” becomes laughable — many of us are seniors and have had full careers that, we assumed, were of some value to society. Over these years, 200 to 300 different people have participated in our vigil. Women’s Action for New Directions has coordinated our activities, and a number of their members have come regularly. One of our regulars is a Roman Catholic lay worker for social justice. Members of Veterans for Peace have been mainstays. Some of us have been teachers or clergymen. Another has been president of a local college.

One of us fought the fascists in the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. He has to keep walking because his 90-year-old knees really bother him if he stops! Another of us began coming at her lunchtime while working at the Federal Reserve Bank down the street. Since retiring, she comes earlier and stays later. Yet another rode MARTA up from his job at CNN — until he got fired. What links us? We were pretty sure something was fishy, and we cared.

We learned something about presenting and exchanging ideas: You can’t say much on a sign that only has space for a few words. We appreciated pedestrians who stopped to actually talk for a few minutes, whether they agreed with us or not. We had visitors from France, Belgium, Germany — and even one young man from Azerbaijan.

Ultimately, our statement was simply to return to that corner, Friday after Friday, to stand against a war that we believed was wrong.

Those of us who think we should suspend our vigil trust that President Obama will deliver on his pledge to remove our troops from Iraq with all due speed. Those who feel we should continue are wary of the war in Afghanistan. That war could be a very long one, with only limited prospects of long-term help for the Afghan people. Military action would mean nothing if not accompanied by economic and social renewal. We who have stood for peace would resume our vigil if it seems appropriate.

Some of our signs this last time say, “Peace is the People’s Business.” We urge our fellow citizens to make themselves heard when war is at issue. Perhaps war is sometimes necessary, but it should always be the last resort. This principle was set aside a few years ago, and think what it has cost our country.

• Ed Krebs is a retired history teacher and China specialist from Douglasville.