Ehren
Watada
By Dahr Jamail
15 August 2006
t r u t h o u t
On
Saturday night, I was lucky enough to be at the Veterans for Peace National
Convention. For that night, Lt. Ehren Watada was able to give the following
speech, which I've just received permission to post here. The speech
was met with a powerful, standing ovation from the vets who've been
there.
Lt. Ehren Watada, for those
who don't already know, became the first commissioned officer to publicly
refuse deployment to the unlawful war and occupation in Iraq. While
doing this on June 22, 2006, Watada said, "As the order to take
part in an illegal act is ultimately unlawful as well, I must refuse
that order."
Just as Watada took the stage
and began to speak, over 50 members of Iraq Veterans Against the War
filed in behind him. Watada, surprised by this and obviously taken aback
by the symbolic act, turned back to the audience, took some deep breaths,
then gave this speech:
Thank you everyone. Thank
you all for your tremendous support. How honored and delighted I am
to be in the same room with you tonight. I am deeply humbled by being
in the company of such wonderful speakers.
You are all true American
patriots. Although long since out of uniform, you continue to fight
for the very same principles you once swore to uphold and defend. No
one knows the devastation and suffering of war more than veterans -
which is why we should always be the first to prevent it.
I wasn't entirely sure
what to say tonight. I thought as a leader in general I should speak
to motivate. Now I know that this isn't the military and surely there
are many out there who outranked me at one point or another - and yes,
I'm just a Lieutenant. And yet, I feel as though we are all citizens
of this great country and what I have to say is not a matter of authority
- but from one citizen to another. We have all seen this war tear apart
our country over the past three years. It seems as though nothing we've
done, from vigils to protests to letters to Congress, have had any effect
in persuading the powers that be. Tonight I will speak to you on my
ideas for a change of strategy. I am here tonight because I took a leap
of faith. My action is not the first and it certainly will not be the
last. Yet, on behalf of those who follow, I require your help - your
sacrifice - and that of countless other Americans. I may fail. We may
fail. But nothing we have tried has worked so far. It is time for change
and the change starts with all of us.
I stand before you today,
not as an expert - not as one who pretends to have all the answers.
I am simply an American and a servant of the American people. My humble
opinions today are just that. I realize that you may not agree with
everything I have to say. However, I did not choose to be a leader for
popularity. I did it to serve and make better the soldiers of this country.
And I swore to carry out this charge honorably under the rule of law.
Today, I speak with you
about a radical idea. It is one born from the very concept of the American
soldier (or service member). It became instrumental in ending the Vietnam
War - but it has been long since forgotten. The idea is this: that to
stop an illegal and unjust war, the soldiers can choose to stop fighting
it.
Now it is not an easy
task for the soldier. For he or she must be aware that they are being
used for ill-gain. They must hold themselves responsible for individual
action. They must remember duty to the Constitution and the people supersedes
the ideologies of their leadership. The soldier must be willing to face
ostracism by their peers, worry over the survival of their families,
and of course the loss of personal freedom. They must know that resisting
an authoritarian government at home is equally important to fighting
a foreign aggressor on the battlefield. Finally, those wearing the uniform
must know beyond any shadow of a doubt that by refusing immoral and
illegal orders they will be supported by the people not with mere words
but by action.
The American soldier
must rise above the socialization that tells them authority should always
be obeyed without question. Rank should be respected but never blindly
followed. Awareness of the history of atrocities and destruction committed
in the name of America - either through direct military intervention
or by proxy war - is crucial. They must realize that this is a war not
out of self-defense but by choice, for profit and imperialistic domination.
WMD, ties to Al Qaeda, and ties to 9/11 never existed and never will.
The soldier must know that our narrowly and questionably elected officials
intentionally manipulated the evidence presented to Congress, the public,
and the world to make the case for war. They must know that neither
Congress nor this administration has the authority to violate the prohibition
against pre-emptive war - an American law that still stands today. This
same administration uses us for rampant violations of time-tested laws
banning torture and degradation of prisoners of war. Though the American
soldier wants to do right, the illegitimacy of the occupation itself,
the policies of this administration, and rules of engagement of desperate
field commanders will ultimately force them to be party to war crimes.
They must know some of these facts, if not all, in order to act.
Mark Twain once remarked,
"Each man must for himself alone decide what is right and what
is wrong, which course is patriotic and which isn't. You cannot shirk
this and be a man. To decide against your conviction is to be an unqualified
and inexcusable traitor, both to yourself and to your country …"
By this, each and every American soldier, marine, airman, and sailor
is responsible for their choices and their actions. The freedom to choose
is only one that we can deny ourselves.
The oath we take swears
allegiance not to one man but to a document of principles and laws designed
to protect the people. Enlisting in the military does not relinquish
one's right to seek the truth - neither does it excuse one from rational
thought nor the ability to distinguish between right and wrong. "I
was only following orders" is never an excuse.
The Nuremburg Trials
showed America and the world that citizenry as well as soldiers have
the unrelinquishable obligation to refuse complicity in war crimes perpetrated
by their government. Widespread torture and inhumane treatment of detainees
is a war crime. A war of aggression born through an unofficial policy
of prevention is a crime against the peace. An occupation violating
the very essence of international humanitarian law and sovereignty is
a crime against humanity. These crimes are funded by our tax dollars.
Should citizens choose to remain silent through self-imposed ignorance
or choice, it makes them as culpable as the soldier in these crimes.
The Constitution is no
mere document - neither is it old, out-dated, or irrelevant. It is the
embodiment of all that Americans hold dear: truth, justice, and equality
for all. It is the formula for a government of the people and by the
people. It is a government that is transparent and accountable to whom
they serve. It dictates a system of checks and balances and separation
of powers to prevent the evil that is tyranny.
As strong as the Constitution
is, it is not foolproof. It does not fully take into account the frailty
of human nature. Profit, greed, and hunger for power can corrupt individuals
as much as they can corrupt institutions. The founders of the Constitution
could not have imagined how money would infect our political system.
Neither could they believe a standing army would be used for profit
and manifest destiny. Like any common dictatorship, soldiers would be
ordered to commit acts of such heinous nature as to be deemed most ungentlemanly
and unbecoming that of a free country.
The American soldier
is not a mercenary. He or she does not simply fight wars for payment.
Indeed, the state of the American soldier is worse than that of a mercenary.
For a soldier-for-hire can walk away if they are disgusted by their
employer's actions. Instead, especially when it comes to war, American
soldiers become indentured servants whether they volunteer out of patriotism
or are drafted through economic desperation. Does it matter what the
soldier believes is morally right? If this is a war of necessity, why
force men and women to fight? When it comes to a war of ideology, the
lines between right and wrong are blurred. How tragic it is when the
term Catch-22 defines the modern American military.
Aside from the reality
of indentured servitude, the American soldier in theory is much nobler.
Soldier or officer, when we swear our oath it is first and foremost
to the Constitution and its protectorate, the people. If soldiers realized
this war is contrary to what the Constitution extols - if they stood
up and threw their weapons down - no President could ever initiate a
war of choice again. When we say, "… Against all enemies
foreign and domestic," what if elected leaders became the enemy?
Whose orders do we follow? The answer is the conscience that lies in
each soldier, each American, and each human being. Our duty to the Constitution
is an obligation, not a choice.
The military, and especially
the Army, is an institution of fraternity and close-knit camaraderie.
Peer pressure exists to ensure cohesiveness but it stamps out individualism
and individual thought. The idea of brotherhood is difficult to pull
away from if the alternative is loneliness and isolation. If we want
soldiers to choose the right but difficult path - they must know beyond
any shadow of a doubt that they will be supported by Americans. To support
the troops who resist, you must make your voices heard. If they see
thousands supporting me, they will know. I have heard your support,
as has Suzanne Swift, and Ricky Clousing - but many others have not.
Increasingly, more soldiers are questioning what they are being asked
to do. Yet, the majority lack awareness to the truth that is buried
beneath the headlines. Many more see no alternative but to obey. We
must show open-minded soldiers a choice and we must give them courage
to act.
Three weeks ago, Sgt.
Hernandez from the 172nd Stryker Brigade was killed, leaving behind
a wife and two children. In an interview, his wife said he sacrificed
his life so that his family could survive. I'm sure Sgt. Hernandez cherished
the camaraderie of his brothers, but given a choice, I doubt he would
put himself in a position to leave his family husbandless and fatherless.
Yet that's the point, you see. People like Sgt. Hernandez don't have
a choice. The choices are to fight in Iraq or let your family starve.
Many soldiers don't refuse this war en mass because, like all of us,,
they value their families over their own lives and perhaps their conscience.
Who would willingly spend years in prison for principle and morality
while denying their family sustenance?
I tell this to you because
you must know that to stop this war, for the soldiers to stop fighting
it, they must have the unconditional support of the people. I have seen
this support with my own eyes. For me it was a leap of faith. For other
soldiers, they do not have that luxury. They must know it and you must
show it to them. Convince them that no matter how long they sit in prison,
no matter how long this country takes to right itself, their families
will have a roof over their heads, food in their stomachs, opportunities
and education. This is a daunting task. It requires the sacrifice of
all of us. Why must Canadians feed and house our fellow Americans who
have chosen to do the right thing? We should be the ones taking care
of our own. Are we that powerless - are we that unwilling to risk something
for those who can truly end this war? How do you support the troops
but not the war? By supporting those who can truly stop it; let them
know that resistance to participate in an illegal war is not futile
and not without a future.
I have broken no law
but the code of silence and unquestioning loyalty. If I am guilty of
any crime, it is that I learned too much and cared too deeply for the
meaningless loss of my fellow soldiers and my fellow human beings. If
I am to be punished it should be for following the rule of law over
the immoral orders of one man. If I am to be punished it should be for
not acting sooner. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "History will
have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period … was
not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence
of the good people."
Now, I'm not a hero.
I am a leader of men who said enough is enough. Those who called for
war prior to the invasion compared diplomacy with Saddam to the compromises
made with Hitler. I say, we compromise now by allowing a government
that uses war as the first option instead of the last to act with impunity.
Many have said this about the World Trade Towers, "Never Again."
I agree. Never again will we allow those who threaten our way of life
to reign free - be they terrorists or elected officials. The time to
fight back is now - the time to stand up and be counted is today.
I'll end with one more
Martin Luther King Jr. quote:
One who breaks an unjust
law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the
penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community
over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for
law.
Thank you and bless you
all.
The only thing Watada said
that I would disagree with is that he claimed that he is not a hero.
He is a leader, yet again, by taking this stance. And he may never know
how many lives he has already touched.
Today, it is up to the anti-war
movement to make sure his leadership touches as many soldiers' lives
in Iraq as possible. Watada is making his stand. He needs continued
support.
As he said, if more American
soldiers in Iraq know that they, along with their families, will be
supported if they stand up against this illegal occupation, countless
more will follow, and this repulsive war will end.