Pacifist speaks about life in Iraq

When Americans begin to realize their ability to change, they have the potential to end the Iraq War. This was the main message Cliff Kindy delivered in a speech Thursday at the First United Church.\nKindy, a pacifist and long-time member of Christian Peacemaker Teams, spent about two years in Iraq between fall 2002 and the present. Kindy prefaced his speech by saying he comes with a perspective, but there are many others who have been to Iraq who might feel differently.\nKindy asked the crowd that attended the town meeting-style presentation what it would take to stop the war. Kindy urged the crowd members, both Bloomington community members and IU students, to recognize the power they hold and their ability to incite change.\n“Sometimes we think very small of ourselves,” Kindy said. “We don’t think of the capacity that we have. Empires are running scared because of our potential.”\nAfter his experiences in Iraq, Kindy presented a view of Iraq that resonated strongly with the audience. Kindy was clear in his belief that the United States must get out of Iraq now. After the speech, many audience members came up and shared similar sentiments, providing personal stories as well. One audience member, a native Iraqi, told stories of his sister not being able to see her daughter anymore because they live in separate walled-off sections of Baghdad.\n“We will be a group building bridges when everyone else is building walls higher and higher and higher,” Kindy said.\nKindy and members of the audience participated in a dialogue outlining the necessary steps to get out of Iraq. Some of the suggested options included not paying the taxes in phone bills and yearly taxes that go toward Iraq funding. Audience members advocated fighting against allowing military recruiting centers to be on campus. In addition, Kindy urged citizens to live a lifestyle that does not need to be defended by war.\nKindy warned citizens to not view the situation narrowly. Just because things in America appear one way, citizens should consider how the lives of Iraqis have been affected.\n“I begin to see why it was so easy for the Germans (in World War II) to say ‘Well, it’s not affecting me,’” Kindy said.\nThough congressmen and representatives were invited to attend the talk, none could attend, but Trent Deckard of Rep. Baron Hill’s Bloomington office was present. In addition, congressional candidate Gretchen Clearwater spoke.\nKindy spoke for about an hour while audience members shared opinions in an hour-long discussion that followed. IU junior Lauren Johnson encouraged the audience to form interfaith communities. These are the only way to come to peace with the situation and with one another, Johnson said.\nAs ideas and opinions circulated, Kindy drove home one key message. Transforming decisions don’t start at the top, but instead at the bottom with grass-roots movements, Kindy said. The best way to dictate change is to show that people demand it.\n“If we don’t speak out, we’re as guilty as they are,” Kindy said. “We’re a democracy, right?”