The War Stops Here

25% Jump in membership since Winter Soldier

It’s a busy time at Iraq Veterans Against the War. Winter Soldier is now a month behind us, but the effects of all the hard work of our members and volunteers are still being felt. Before Winter Soldier, we had 800 members. Last week, we reached 1,007, and we’re processing more applications every day. Our organizers are busy contacting new members and sending out membership packets at a rate we’ve never experienced before. We appreciate all the hard work and contributions our volunteers, staff, members, and supporters put into Winter Soldier. We’re reaping the rewards of your efforts, and we have no plans to slow down.

IVAW member Tomas Young in Body of War film

Tomas Young, a veteran who was paralyzed by a bullet to his spine after less than a week serving in Iraq, has been a member of IVAW since 2005 and formerly served on our board of directors. Body of War, directed by Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro, is a documentary about Tomas’s return from Iraq and his growth into an anti-war advocate. It premiered last week in New York, and it’s coming to a city near you. The staff at our national office in Philadelphia, along with volunteers and friends, went to the Philadelphia premier, and I can tell you that this is a movie everyone in America needs to see. Too often, people forget the very personal price that is paid by veterans returning with physical and mental disabilities, and this film is a reminder not only of that price, but what happens when a veteran finds his voice.

Don’t wait - go to bodyofwar.com and find out where you can see this film, and then get your family and friends to join you at a theater. And if your local movie theater isn’t showing Body of War, ask them to add it to their schedule. You can read more about this film in USA Today.

Body of War benefit album

Tomas is doing more than just speaking out; he also worked with Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam and Sire Records to produce a benefit album with songs by Bruce Springsteen, Ben Harper, Neil Young, John Lennon, Rage Against the Machine and Public Enemy. All proceeds from sales of this double CD, also called Body of War, benefit IVAW, and the money it has raised is already being put to work recruiting new members and spreading the word about our work. Get the album today.

IVAW in Iraq

Casey Porter, an IVAW member out of Fort Hood, TX, has been producing video reports about his experiences as a “stop-lossed under-cover soldier” in Iraq. Casey was recently sent on his second deployment to Iraq, and his videos give a view of what our soldiers are going through that you won’t see in General Petraeus’s report. You can watch Casey’s video reports in our IVAW Updates section. (Casey and his parents were recently interviewed on the CBS Early show - click here to watch.) Active Duty troops are speaking out more and more, and IVAW members are mobilizing to support them. We’ll have more reports from our active duty troops in the coming months.

Books and hoodies available in the online store

You can get more perspectives from soldiers and veterans by picking up a copy of Warrior Writers I: Shoot, Move and Communicate or Warrior Writers II: Remaking Sense in our online store. These two books collect the writing of IVAW members from a series of ongoing workshops. You can also pick up one of our new IVAW supporter hoodies to show your support - stop by the store now to get yours.

Winter Soldier online

Too often, the voices and experiences of those most intimately impacted by the ongoing occupation are ignored or minimized.  The U.S. occupation of Iraq has profoundly shaped the lives of the men, women, and children of Iraq and will continue to do so for generations to come.   IVAW is grateful to the Iraqi people who shared their stories with us and for the men and women of Alive In Baghdad, who put themselves at risk in order to collect video testimony for Winter Soldier.

Our archive of Winter Soldier testimony keeps growing - we’ve added new video of civilian testimony as well as more of the panels from the Winter Soldier weekend.  Go to the Winter Soldier Testimony section on our site for a full list.

The spectrum of resistance

There are as many different ways to resist the war as there are IVAW members – and every new member brings new ideas. From graffiti spreading the word about IVAW in Baghdad, to telling the stories of veterans, to organizing new chapters on bases, IVAW members are hard at work and we need your support. We’re proud that so many new members are joining every day, and we need contributions to help us send them new member packets, get new chapters up and running, and get more copies of our newsletter, Sit-Rep, to bases around the world. Your support is needed now, so please make a donation today.

Peace,
Kelly Dougherty
Former Sergeant, Army National Guard
Executive Director
Iraq Veterans Against the War