Bring Them Home Now Tour Comes to Raleigh

[fivecats]

Cindy Sheehan in Raleigh #1
September 2005 Raleigh, NC
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Those of you who are not aware of the anti-war subculture of American politics these days may not  know who Cindy Sheehan is.  Cindy is the mother of a young soldier, Casey Sheehan, who was killed in Iraq in April 2004.  After the shock of Casey's death started to subside, Cindy got angry at pResident George Bush and started asking for a meeting with him.  She simply wanted answers to some tough questions, wanting to know why her son had died, what the war was for and why we, as a nation, needed to invade Iraq. 

Bush refused to even acknowledge her request and, instead, set out for his ranch in Crawford, TX for a 5-week vacation.  Sheehan, angry at being snubbed, decided to follow Bush to Crawford.  Her cause became a counter-culture peace movement ralling cry and she soon found herself down in Crawford with hundreds of other people.  There, they set up "Camp Casey" and waiting for Bush to meet with them.  They became media savvy, giving interviews to news outlets around the world clearly stating their love for their country and support for the soldiers in the Gulf region, just not for the leadership that is supposed to be guiding everything.

When Bush left Crawford, Sheehan decided to go to Washington.  It was eventually decided to turn the trip to Washington into an event.  The Bring Them Home Now Tour  has three branches, with Sheehan jumping between the branches.  Today was her last stop on the Southern Tour and was in the downtown Raleigh area.

I stopped off on my way home from work to get some images and to get her autograph for Bonn. 

Sheehan is a strong, caring woman who is smart, tenatious and determined.  She's also given hope to hundreds of thousands of Americans who have been looking for someone to start the rallying cry with a voice that won't go away.

Sheehan arrives in DC next Saturday and there's a big protest march against the war that afternoon in DC.  We'll be there.






Cindy Sheehan in Raleigh #2
September 2005 Raleigh, NC
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Cindy Sheehan in Raleigh #4
September 2005 Raleigh, NC
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Speaker at Bring Them Back Home Now Tour Rally in Raleigh
September 2005 Raleigh, NC
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Cindy Sheehan in Raleigh #3
September 2005 Raleigh, NC
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Comments

[ruralrob.livejournal.com]

I love it when we get real life photo journmalism on LJ like this,. Well done for bringing it home . .

[new-brunette.livejournal.com]

My thoughts exactly.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Thanks, G., but we all know how easily impressed you are. ;-)

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[fivecats.livejournal.com]

See, I didn't look at this that way at all. I saw these as, at best, a series of poorly connected snapshots. The main subject was often at too great of a distance to be the clear subject of the image, and/or she was blocked in parts by obstacles between the camera and herself.

At best, I had hoped to convey a sense of how personally involved with all of this she is and how much support (mental, spiritual and physical support) she's devoting to this cause and the people around her.

Thanks for the compliments, though.

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[basefinder.livejournal.com]

That's cool that you went out to meet her. I hope you gave her a hug or some words of support & encouragement.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Actually, she gave me a big hug. She gave the woman in the red top a big, long hug before someone went up to her to get her autograph. That woman got a page signed in a scrapbook and left. I asked her to sign a "Bring Them Back Home Now" postcard and she asked what my name was. I asked her to sign it for Bonn (who was home working in her shtudio). After she signed it she surprised me by giving me a hug. Being an old hand at hugs, I was fine with it and grateful that someone so instrumental in changing the nationwide public discourse on the war would take those extra seconds with me.

While she was signing I thanked her for giving so many of us hope for the first time in a long time.

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[basefinder.livejournal.com]

With the daunting campaign she is on, I bet she derives a lot of strength from the hugs of supporters she meets along the way.

Ya done good.

[zhenzhi.livejournal.com]

our news has reported on cindy sheehan. i hope the momentum keeps growing with this. :-)

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

The news of New Orleans derailed the peace movement's place in the news and the collective American mind, but I think the march in DC will help to bring it back to the forefront.

Another interesting thing over here that ties the two together: Dubbya has said he wants (a) to rebuild New Orleans and (b) have the federal government pay for it. When the American people were polled on how to actually pay for it, the response was to take money from the war in Iraq -- meaning pull the troops out sooner than later.

I think Dubbya's "Little War Game" is going to be ending much sooner than later now.

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[smileyfish.livejournal.com]

I wish her, and all those supporting her, the very best.

Do you know that there were massive protests here about joining the war? That millions of people walked to say no and that the majority (of the non-apathetic people who actually care what happens) were always against it?

Our government chose not to represent the will of it's people. And then we (not me though!) re-elected him.

I am angry with my government. I am also angry with your government. I'm angry at the people who are smart enough to know better but care more about their hip pockets than about society, community and the public good. And I love the people too.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Sheehan was wearing a button that read:

"I love America | I just don't like Bush"

I think that pretty much sums up what a lot of us feel.

I'm down on a lot of what our country does, but I tend to place the blame for a lot of it on (a) our country's leadership and (b) the mindless people who actually believe what those leaders say. I think New Orleans -- specifically, the lack of response in the face of the horrific images coming out of the area from the newscasts -- showed the huge descrepency between what the government leadership said and what was actually happening. That shook a lot of people in to coming awake, at least for a while.

Of course, just the other day, Bush went to a Cheveron oil refinery plant in the gulf region. It was one of those "what were his handlers thinking?" moments (or a "He's showing his true colors" moment again) with Dubbya just reminding everyone of his long ties to the oil industry. People are out there in Mississippi and Lousiana still without homes, food or clothing and he's out doing the meet & greet in a clean, functioning oil refinery. [shakes head sadly]

Dubbya won with only 51% of the country voting for him. His current approval ratings are in the high 30s. He went on television last night to try and shore up those ratings by doing all sorts of calls for The Rebuilding of New Orleans -- but failed to mention how it was going to be paid for. Most Americans believe it should be paid for by pulling money away from Iraq (meaning bringing home the troops sooner rather than later). He's not known for listening to "the will of the people" at all, but he's running into problems with the people to the far Right as well on this one. It's tough to sell massive spending programs to fiscal conservatives with no plans for where the money is supposed to come from.

I understand the anger at the US. Just know that we're not all like Dubbya's crowd.

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[drood.livejournal.com]

Great photos! I love that you were there for this.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

There was only a small crowd there, say 150+ people or so. For a Thursday afternoon, just after work and on short notice, that was about what I had expected. Still, I knew I could take an alternate route home and be right there, so adding my one number to the crowd was important.

I started taking pictures at a distance, then approached Sheehan tentatively. I was somewhat embarrased to just ask her for her autograph, but I knew it would mean a lot to Bonn, so I was looking for an opportunity. Turned out, once she was approached by people in general Sheehan gave them her full attention and energy. She seems like a genuinely caring and appreciative person who is willing to give all of herself over to this unplanned, swelling movement.

That's a hero for ya.

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