Students commemorate fourth anniversary of war in Iraq

Six hours, 20 people, 600 wristbands and 3,240 names. That's what it took for College Democrats outside the Frist Campus Center yesterday to commemorate the four-year anniversary of the war in Iraq and remind students of the American soldiers who have died so far.

"Our primary goal was to just remind students that it's been four years and we're still in Iraq," College Democrats president Julia Brower '08 said. "We think there tends to be student apathy ... so our primary goal was remembrance of the war and of the U.S. soldiers who've lost their lives so far."

Participants in the demonstration took turns reading the names in half-hour to hour-long blocks, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The College Democrats offered to tie black ribbons around the wrists of passersby in memory of the dead.

The group's demonstration coincided with the Senate's narrow approval of a non-binding timeline for troop withdrawal from Iraq by March 2008. The House passed a similar funding bill last week that called for a pullout by September 2008. President Bush has vowed that he will veto any bill with a timeline.

"What we are saying about the House and Senate bills are that they are a step in the right direction," Brower said. "Clearly, we think something different needs to happen and that eventually a pullout should be happening, but it needs to be done in a constructive way."

The College Democrats have not endorsed either bill.

Rob Weiss '09, vice president of College Democrats, said the community seemed to respond well to the event. "I think people really responded positively. It's pretty commonly accepted that we do need to do something different in Iraq," Weiss said. "People on both sides of the aisle are admitting that there have been failures."

Some students, however, thought the memorial was too inconspicuous; many students were in a rush to get to class and may not have noticed the booth.

"I felt kind of bad for them because there was no one around and anyone who was definitely didn't seem to be noticing," Hannah McDonald-Moniz '10 said.

Others agreed, saying the demonstration could have been more effective.

"I think it was a good idea ... But, I thought for the demonstration to have had more of an effect it had to be more 'in your face.' It should have involved more people," Cameron McLain '10 said.

College Republicans president Jon Fernandez '08 said in an email statement that, while he welcomes political activism on campus, he feels that the war dead should not be politicized.

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"[Mourning] the loss of American soldiers in battle should not be a partisan issue; every American should remember their sacrifices and hold their names in reverence."

Responding to criticism that the event was politicizing the dead, Brower said that group members made it clear that they were simply handing out these bracelets to honor the Iraq War fatalities.

"We're not telling that these bands mean you're against the war or that you're for a specific House resolution," Brower said. "Yes, we are a political group, but that doesn't mean that this specific act has to be seen in that light."

On the other hand, Weiss said the war casualties were "very much a political issue, and it's an issue that the people who are controlling the direction of the war are the same people who've made these failures over and over again."

Economics professor Uwe Reinhardt, whose son Mark '01 completed two combat tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan, said in an email, "I do not know how he would feel about such a demonstration, but I personally believe that demonstrations of this sort are perfectly within keeping of our democratic ideals. You cannot sensibly argue that our troops fight to keep us free and then suppress freedom of speech at home to respect our troops. In fact, suppressing freedom of assembly and of speech at home would be disrespectful to our troops."

In addition to the name reading, College Democrats screened "The War Tapes," a documentary filmed by soldiers on the ground in Iraq, in Frist.

Princeton ROTC cadet battalion commander George Schwartz '07 declined to comment on the demonstration, noting that cadets are not permitted to speak about political matters in their official capacity.