2008 Woodie Awards
What's wrong with the antiwar movement?
More of us need to get involved
Kristen Golden
Issue date: 2/8/07 Section: Opinion
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The antiwar movement is doing all the right things. It's too bad that many among us are not.
The Emerson students who planned on attending the massive antiwar rally in the nation's capital were derailed when buses intended to transport students from Emerson, Simmons and Harvard to the march reported mechanical difficulties.
These individuals could not be deterred from their cause, however, and many attended the local protest in Boston Common instead.
Unfortunately, the demonstration in our own backyard left much to be desired. It was ill-attended, there was no march and it was extremely disorganized.
With so much of the American public opposing the war, why is it so difficult for the movement to get it together? And where were all the supposedly left-wing Emerson students on Saturday?
Dr. Gregory Payne, a professor in the Organizational and Political Communication department and an expert on the Kent State massacre, had a simple answer: "the draft." He explained that the draft directly impacted students' lives, making the war more personal.
The Iraq War has no official draft, but it is much more discriminatory. So many young men and women join the Army based on the high and, for some, unattainable costs of college.
Students of low-income households too often find the armed forces the only thing available to them.
Reinstituting the draft would be the most mobilizing force when it comes to inciting protest among our generation.
But the war is already personal in other ways. Our tax money is funding this fiasco. Our government has us citizens, the majority of whom oppose this war, paying for the battle.
If the power of the purse isn't personal enough, think of those who are paying the ultimate price: American soldiers, reporters, doctors and Iraqi civilians.
Each individual who dies is like a stone falling into still waters, creating an emotional ripple effect. For each person who loses his or her life for this mistake, it affects their family and local community in a personal way.
The Emerson students who planned on attending the massive antiwar rally in the nation's capital were derailed when buses intended to transport students from Emerson, Simmons and Harvard to the march reported mechanical difficulties.
These individuals could not be deterred from their cause, however, and many attended the local protest in Boston Common instead.
Unfortunately, the demonstration in our own backyard left much to be desired. It was ill-attended, there was no march and it was extremely disorganized.
With so much of the American public opposing the war, why is it so difficult for the movement to get it together? And where were all the supposedly left-wing Emerson students on Saturday?
Dr. Gregory Payne, a professor in the Organizational and Political Communication department and an expert on the Kent State massacre, had a simple answer: "the draft." He explained that the draft directly impacted students' lives, making the war more personal.
The Iraq War has no official draft, but it is much more discriminatory. So many young men and women join the Army based on the high and, for some, unattainable costs of college.
Students of low-income households too often find the armed forces the only thing available to them.
Reinstituting the draft would be the most mobilizing force when it comes to inciting protest among our generation.
But the war is already personal in other ways. Our tax money is funding this fiasco. Our government has us citizens, the majority of whom oppose this war, paying for the battle.
If the power of the purse isn't personal enough, think of those who are paying the ultimate price: American soldiers, reporters, doctors and Iraqi civilians.
Each individual who dies is like a stone falling into still waters, creating an emotional ripple effect. For each person who loses his or her life for this mistake, it affects their family and local community in a personal way.
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