IU students go the distance to protest war in Iraq

Student interest on campus in the potential conflict with Iraq is steadily rising, as attendance is increasing at meetings concerning a possible war, discussions are becoming more heated and students are going the distance.\nAlong with four friends, freshman Veronica Jacobs left Bloomington on Jan. 16 and headed to Washington D.C. in hopes of joining a national rally the following Saturday. After their car broke down in Pennsylvania, Jacobs went the extra thousand miles by hitchhiking and riding in the trunk of a hatchback.\n"The rally was just to show Americans have a voice and that they're using it to show the government that there are a lot of people who oppose this war," Jacobs said. "There are so many more intelligent ways of solving a conflict."\nJacobs stayed the whole day to watch speakers Al Sharpton and Jessica Lange. \n"There were some college students there, but it's hard for us to raise the money to travel that far," she said.\nSophomore Kitty Kaler, who was stranded in Pennsylvania and decided not to hitchhike after their car broke down, agrees with Jacobs and wishes she could have made it to D.C.\n"I don't believe there is such a thing as a just war," Kaler said. "I could've stayed in Indy, but tried to get to Washington to be part of a more national crowd. It regains your hope to be around others who think like you."\nSophomore Erin Revtyak also made the trip to D.C. She was in Washington for about six hours and marched for two miles.\n"It was amazing in Washington," Revtyak said. "There was so much diversity."\nShe believes a large part of the U.S. government's justification of this war is oil.\n"I came to show that not everyone backs the U.S. government."\nRevtyak also attended a weekly meeting in Ballantine Hall Monday night to protest the possible war held by the Coalition to Oppose the War in Iraq.\n"There were a lot of people here (Monday)," COWI member Jamecyn Morey said. "We have been meeting for about three or four months now and attendance is really high tonight."\nAt their meetings, COWI usually discusses getting others involved on campus, like tabling at the Indiana Memorial Union. But last night there was more discussion about the actual conflict with Iraq because, for the first time, people with opposing view points showed up.\nMichael Schuler, a freshman from New Albany, Ind., supports the war.\n"I wanted to hear other people's viewpoints, and to convey my own," Schuler said.\nHe said he believes a war with Iraq will potentially save thousands of lives in the future by disarming Saddam now.\nMorey and fellow member James Bourke said COWI welcomes opposing viewpoints such as that of Schuler.\nAmong the diverse attendees was graduate student Serdar Altok, an international student from Turkey. Altok attended the meeting because he was interested in how Americans viewed the conflict with Iraq.\n"I wanted to see if there was something I can do because I can't vote here," Altok said. "The U.S. supports the Turkish government often, so we kind of have to support them back. But most of the people back home are opposed to this war."\nCOWI's meetings are held at 6 p.m. every Monday in Ballantine Hall 209.