Memorial Day candlelight vigil divides campus community

Memorial Day is often perceived by many Americans as a celebration of reconciliation and not a day of political division. Memorial Day in Bloomington, however, sparked war protests and peace activist demonstrations because some students and residents within the campus community believe the United States' invasion of Iraq calls for immediate international resolution.\nAmong American flags whipping to and fro with the summer evening breeze, Bloomington students, residents and guests gathered in People's Park on Monday to participate in a candlelight vigil to support all Iraqi and American men and women killed during the war and subsequent occupation. Members of the community arrived costumed in peace signs, grey Army sweatshirts and various red, white, and blue paraphernalia. \nBloomington Peace Action Coalition member David Keppel demanded President George Bush withdrawal all U.S. military personnel from Iraq as stated within the proposed U.S. House of Representative Resolution 35, sponsored by more than two dozen congressmen and congresswomen. He also demanded all elected Indiana officials, in particular Mike Sodrel, make withdrawing American troops their highest priority.\n"The Bush Administration has not done anything to address the greatest danger facing the United States: a 9-11 with nuclear weapons," Keppel said. "He hasn't pledged not to attack North Korea or ratified the comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty ... Peace is impractical until you look at war."\nA few counter-protesters voiced their concern in periodic bursts of profanity from passing cars rolling through the stop signs at the corner of Kirkwood Ave. and Dunn St. \nKeppel also referred to Operation Iraqi Freedom, once referred to as Operation Iraqi Liberation, as a fallacy to liberate Iraq's oil supply. He said humans can't destroy the earth and expect to live well, with particular reference to the "catastrophic consequences for the global environment" by continued petroleum dependence.\n"We mourn for those who have lost a relative in war -- your loss is our loss," Keppel said. "We pledge to work as hard for peace as if your loved one were a member of our family because he or she was and is. The greatest form of love is to work for peace."\nMemorial Day candlelight vigil participants read a "small portion" of the Iraqi civilian names and dates of those killed after December, 2004, and the rank, name, city, state and date of death of Indiana soldiers killed in combat since March 2005.\nBloomington Peace Action Coalition member Timothy Baer said the "new American empire" has given cause for campus community members to mourn everyone involved in the conflict -- both combatants and civilians. He cited the minimum figure of Iraqi civilian casualties as 21,834, although he reiterated the wartime reality that "no number" can ever account for all innocent civilians killed while a country is undergoing a military siege.\nBaer also reminded the audience that an estimated 2,142 Iraqi police and guardsmen have died -- 842 in 2005 alone, according to published reports. He asked the audience to observe a Memorial Day moment of silence for U.S. military personnel killed in all U.S. combat situations.\nMembers of the Progressive Faculty Coalition and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom also encouraged candlelight vigil participants to sign a petition urging Indiana officials to support House Resolution 35, and each campus community member present was offered a white candle supported by a blue paper plate drip tray. \nA few counter-protesters disrupted the silence, however, by tearing down fliers posted on two corners of People's Park that declared Bush the "World's Biggest Terrorist Threat." Counterprotest screams of "freedom of speech" when confronted by candle holders caused bowed heads to raise and shut eyes to open. \nThe peaceful moment of patriotic reflection was further shattered by the sounds of skateboards scrapping the mosaic tiles scattered throughout the park and the sound of the IU Student Building's clock bell chiming nine times.\nMemorial Day at People's Park in Bloomington concluded with a viewing of the film "Arlington West," a synopsis by Peter Dudar, which documents the Veterans For Peace war memorial of 1,500 crosses erected at the Santa Monica Pier every Sunday. The peace activist group refers to the memorial as "a tribute not only to the fallen U.S. soldiers in Iraq, but also to the countless innocent Iraqi citizens." Throughout the broadcast, campus community members trickled from the pinkish-orange glow of People's Park into the darkness leading home.