Letter to the movement:

Dear Friends,
The spirit of resistance has never been stronger at the 
entrance to Ft. Benning -- home to the School of Assassins -- 
than it was on November 18th and 19th. Despite a cold, steady 
rain, more than 10,000 people stood vigil in solidarity with 
those who continue to suffer and die at the hands of SOA 
graduates. Speakers from Colombia and Chiapas, Mexico set 
the tone with first hand accounts of repression in their
communities. The voices of Pete Seeger and acclaimed Canadian 
musician Bruce Cockburn amplified this cry for justice. 3,400 
crossed the line as part of the solemn funeral procession. 200 
more followed in a second wave of affinity group and high risk 
actions including an 80-person parade of giant puppets. Over 
2,100 were arrested and given ban and bar letters. The final
group of people who had been processed were greeted by a 
cheering throng of supporters when the MP's dropped them off 
at a park a few miles from the base.

It will take time to appreciate all the implications of what 
we achieved together at Ft. Benning. The creativity and 
diversity of this movement was brought to bear as never before. 
The women and men religious, veterans, union members and students 
who have been the backbone of this movement for 10 years accounted 
for the bulk of our numbers. This presence, this grounding in our 
tradition, was an invaluable gift. Welcomed into this gathering 
were hundreds of new activists as well, many from the ranks of 
those who protested at the meetings of the WTO and IMF/World Bank. 
Together, we debunked some myths that have become prevalent in the 
media this past year. We showed that young anarchists can come into 
a nonviolent protest and not only be respectful of the tradition, 
but strengthen the witness with their courage and commitment. We 
showed that faith-based activists are not afraid of working with 
those who are different, but create a community that welcomes all 
who would nonviolently resist SOA violence. The image of a group of 
nuns crossing the line side by side with a group of black bloc 
anarchists complete with black bandanas over their faces is a 
powerful expression of strength through unity and diversity. 
We go forward from this moment re-affirmed in our commitment 
to nonviolent struggle, aware that creativity will win over 
domination and this School of Assassins will close. 

Thank you to everyone who made this possible. Nonviolence 
training teams took the SOA Watch road show all over North 
America, and people came to Fort Benning well prepared. 
Local groups worked tirelessly to spread the word about 
our gathering, and coordinated the formidable logistics 
of getting thousands of people to Columbus, GA. Peacekeepers
gave up their freedom and mobility to take on a broad array 
of tasks that were absolutely essential to the success of 
the vigil. Puppeteers gathered a week in advance, and using 
only recycled garbage and their own imaginations created a 
beautiful pageant expressing the hope and resistance of the 
movement. Speakers, poets and musicians traveled from across 
this hemisphere to add their voices. To these people and all 
those whose spirits remained vibrantly alive through two days 
of cold rain, who risked their freedom in solidarity with those 
who risk so much more, go our heartfelt thanks. You are an 
inspiration. To Megan Rice, Charlie Liteky and Chuck Butler, 
still imprisoned at the time of the vigil, your spirit was 
"presente", pushing us forward. To all who have served prison 
time for acts of conscience, to all who stood vigil during 
those early, lonely years at the gates of Fort Benning, we 
say thank you for paving the way for us. Together, we are 
strong, and justice will prevail in the end.

In Solidarity,

SOA Watch Staff; Fr. Roy Bourgeois, Alison Snow, Hendrik Voss, 
Jeff Winder, and Advisory Group; Rita Clark – Nicaragua-US 
Friendship office; Jackie Downing Oberlin College SOA Watch; 
Paddy Inman; SOA Watch Northwest, SOA prisoner of conscience; 
Chris Inserra; SOA Watch Chicago; Ed Kinane; CNY SOA Abolitionists,
SOA prisoner of conscience; Ken Little - SOA Watch Union organizer;
Linda Panetta – SOA Watch Northeast; Luke Quaranta; Warren 
Wilson College SOA Watch; Randy Serraglio SOA Watch Southwest, 
SOA prisoner of conscience; Ann Tiffany; CNY SOA Abolitionists, 
SOA prisoner of conscience; Cecilia Zarate-Laun; Colombia Support 
Network

http://www.soaw.org

[this letter typed in from the netscape inbox by marco]