Articles
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, November 2008, pages 57-58
Waging Peace
Vigilers Respond to Questions About Palestine
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THE HEAT OF the dog days of summer did not discourage eight stalwart peace activists who continued their vigil at the corner of Locust and Third Streets in Des Moines on Aug. 14. Officially, their protest is against the war in Iraq, but the activists are also well-informed about other Middle East conflicts and issues, including the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
“I’ve got several friends who work with the Christian Peacemaker Teams who have gone over to the West Bank,” said Halsey Reynolds, after noting that his activism was originally spurred by revelations of the torture of detainees at Guantanamo.
“I’ve kept an eye on what’s going on over there, and I would like to see military support for Israel stopped,” said Reynolds, a member of the Catholic Worker Movement in Kansas City, MO.
Dixie Webb of Ankeny is one of five Iowa activists a jury found not guilty in July 2007 of trespassing in the Des Moines offices of Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA). “I totally use olive oil from Palestine,” said Webb, adding that she supports the Palestinians in their quest for self-determination.
“We don’t think any of these issues will be solved by war,” said Eloise Cranke of Des Moines. “It only makes the situation worse.
“We think the Palestinian people have been very badly treated in all of this and are suffering greatly from the lack of justice in that area,” added Cranke, who was honored with the Catholic Peace Ministry’s 12th annual Bishop Dingman Award in 2007.
“I’m out here to promote peace,” said Rochelle Oakley of Urbandale, who was wearing an Obama 2008 shirt. Asked about Obama’s approach to Middle East foreign policy, Oakley said, “I think he’s right. We need to be more diplomatic. We need to talk.”
—Michael Gillespie
