Report by Debbie Clark
Atlanta war mothers and antiwar activists held a press conference and protest in front of the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Decatur, Georgia today in a show of solidarity with Cindy Sheehan, currently camped outside of George Bush’s ranch in Crawford, Texas. The event was organized by the Georgia Peace and Justice Coalition/Atlanta; Military Families Speak Out; Veterans For Peace Chapter 125; Gold Star Families For Peace, Atlanta WAND, and the Atlanta International Action Center.
The press conference was moderated by Rev. Timothy McDonald, national chair of African American Ministers in Action. Also speaking was Patricia Roberts of Lithonia, Georgia, mother of Army Spc. Jamaal Rashard Addison, the first Georgian killed in Iraq, on March 23, 2003; Mary Ann MacCombie of Atlanta, whose son Sgt. Ryan M. Campbell was killed in Iraq on April 29, 2004; and Howard Wolf, a Veterans For Peace member, former Navy combat pilot who served two tours in Vietnam, and father of a combat pilot who is preparing for his fourth tour in Iraq next year.
An AP article covering this protest is currently located at the Channel 11 (Atlanta) news station website.
A shorter version of this AP article is also available with a video clip covering the action in Atlanta interspersed with video clips of Cindy Sheehan. (Look on the left and click on the video entitled, “Mother of soldier killed in Iraq protests in front of Bush’s ranch.” This will take you directly to the video.)
Fox 5 Atlanta covered this event as well; however, coverage does not appear on their website. The Fox 5 coverage of this on television on the ten o’clock news contained a good clip of Patricia Roberts speaking, with Mary Ann MacCombie standing behind her. The Fox 5 news clip was also interspersed with video clips of Cindy Sheehan’s protest in Crawford.
Atlanta activists are currently discussing the possibility of sending a contingent of activists to Crawford, Texas to support Cindy Sheehan in her request to speak with George Bush about bringing the troops home now. Ms. Sheehan remains camped outside of his ranch where he is vacationing and the president has thus far declined to come out and speak with her or invite her in from the hot sun. Two high-level aides, national security adviser, Stephen Hadley, and deputy chief of staff, Joe Hagin, did come out to speak with Ms. Sheehan on Saturday.
Amy Branham, a Gold Star Families For Peace member from Houston, Texas who attended the Veterans For Peace convention in Dallas and accompanied Cindy Sheehan to Crawford on Saturday, provided Antiwar.com with an exclusive photograph of this meeting, which took place when no media were present.
