Editor,

We, the Student Peace Coalition, would like to respond to Austin Harris’ view that "Instead of Protesting, Students Should Support the Government." We feel strongly that it is our right and our duty to publicly voice criticism of the government when we are not being represented. Only one congressperson dared to vote for caution and restraint rather than for full endorsement of the administration’s military tactics. Though the events of September 11 were horrible, frightening, and confusing, we resist the nation’s tendency to rally behind the flag as an immediate response. As soon as we become unquestioning subjects to our administration, our country loses its democratic foothold and starts to resemble a totalitarian state. One only has to glance at the public opinion polls and the homogeneity of mainstream media coverage to see the eerie absence of dissent.

From what are we dissenting? We are protesting the bombing of the impoverished country of Afghanistan. We are objecting to our government’s refusal to address the role that the U.S. has played in dismantling other countries’ governments and economies for our own material benefit, creating understandable anti-American backlash. We condemn the acts of the individuals who flew planes into buildings, yet we fear that the actions of the U.S. response are merely different forms of terrorism. We reject the government’s willingness to kill any number of civilians and call it "collateral damage." We reject Harris’ statement that "the only effective defense against terrorism is a preemptive offense" for two reasons. First, the war on terrorism is new and unique; our leaders have admitted that this is a difficult and ambiguous issue. We do not believe that other means of stopping/reducing terrorism (diplomatic, economic, etc.) have been determined to be ineffective. Second, "terrorism" is a tactic, not an identifiable object. The U.S. may be able to wipe out terrorist training camps and specific individuals, but we predict that our actions will only generate more anti-American sentiment and more terrorists. The U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan is atrocious and will only further the climate of hate and oppression that affects so much of the world.

We urge members of the Claremont Colleges to join us in speaking out about these important issues. Our meetings are Tuesdays from 11:30-1 (any part of which you can attend) in the basement of Malott Commons at Scripps. Each Thursday afternoon, we march to the corner of Indian Hill and Arrow. Nov. 7-9 we are holding a fast and participating in a National Day of Action on Nov. 9. Check independent news sources such as http://www.indymedia.org and http://www.zmag.org, and e-mail salina_espinosa-setchko@pitzer.edu to join an e-mail list for updates on our actions.

Respectfully,

Alison Leach ‘03

Student Peace Coalition