Many, including, McGovern and Sheehan, now holding Rumsfeld's house under siege
Cindy Sheehan and Ray McGovern led an action late this afternoon to the home of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Below is a report I just wrote, which needs to be updated somewhat. The action is still going on as this is being written.
Four activists, two who are participants in DAWN, have been arrested at Rumsfeld's home, apparently after going through the bushes and up to Rumsfeld's porch, nearly to his door. At least two of the activists do wish to be named (as I understand it), and they include Pete Perry and David Barrows. The other two with them were female activists unknown to me at this time.
I have no further information except the report I just wrote from my time at the action:
***Many, including, McGovern and Sheehan, now holding Rumsfeld's house under siege***
I've just gotten back from the action outside of Donald Rumsfeld's Kalorama home, which is still ongoing, and I must say I was impressed.
People took the streets and blocked much of Connecticut Avenue, ironically forcing cars to take Kalorama, which was then inundated by protesters.
Although Free Republic stood at the home, presumably to guard the space from their arch nemesis Code Pink, protesters paid little attention to them, and moved not only up to the bushes but onto the grounds of Rumsfeld's property, where they then began sitting in (including people we know very well). Free Republic, for their part, while they kept up spirited chants, looked bewildered and surprised by how the action was playing out.
This was ongoing...the vibe was at times pleasant and calling for peace, at times angry and indignant. The marchers seemed to get angry with people in Dupont who waved but would not join.
There was at peak perhaps 100 people in the march, which included former CIA analyst Ray McGovern, and peace movement celebrity Cindy Sheehan, whose son Casey was killed in Iraq.
It was a fantastic blend of forces and shows the power of a house demo. Rumsfeld is rarely if ever at that home, but I think the action has been very uplifting for people who see that there are protest opportunities.
It would be a good idea to go back or actually to go to a home where someone is home.
I loved the time of day, though, since traffic was heavy and forced to confront the reality of the march.
There was no permit, to my knowledge.
I know others will fill in the blanks, but it was a very positive and yet forceful action.
posted by Jim Macdonald @ 3:20 PM
3 Comments:
Thanks for the comment. I'm sure Ms. Sheehan is probably a better person to direct this to; if you read enough of this blog and my posts, I am not interested in Ms. Sheehan as a "face of the movement" or an icon or anything else. I am interested in a ground-up activism that roots in people first.
Cindy Sheehan is simply one person.
Whatever character assassinations we have of any single person or any group of people, all that really matters is what's just, and whether any given cause is just. I don't know anything about grave stones; I do know that war is wrong, and those who support war and fight war are doing something that's wrong. It's a tragedy that Casey died, but frankly what he was doing was wrong. I hope he was able to make his peace with what he was doing, just as we all have to in our own way.
For me, Sheehan's presence was incidental; why does she matter so much to you? I've met her, and she is an approachable person, undoubtedly like all of us - with flaws - but what difference does that make? There's a whole hell lot wrong, and how to resist that wrong is the only thing that matters, not the pluses and minuses of every single person.
Video of the arrests is now available on PoliticsTV.com.
Thanks for the video...looks great, and I passed it along to some of my friends.
For your information, all are out on jail, and I think all face 2 misdemeanor charges of unlawful entry and disorderly conduct. There had been rumors that at least one would be charged with distruction of property, but apparently that is not true.
See the Negroponte action I just blogged. There's a lot more to the story than I've shared, so watch DC Indymedia for video and audio. It should be very telling.
You can also find audio (and maybe video by now) of the great Rumsfeld action as well.
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