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Philadelphia Regional Anti-War Network (PRAWN)

info2506@prawnworks.net or telephone 215-307-7980


Hamburger Hill Peace Event near Senator Specter's on May 21

-- by Leela Metz. Metz2@philau.edu or 610-639-3030

	It is Sunday, April 16, and I am on my way to pick up my sorority
sister Angela Spegal. We look forward to the third Sunday of each month. Not
only does it provide us with more time together, but it also allows us to
voice our views and concerns about the current war in Iraq.  

	The two of us gather with many other people that share our similar
views. Angela and I walk up from the Tuttleman parking lot at Philadelphia
University on Schoolhouse Lane. We are then greeted with warm smiles and
hellos from the other protesters. Angela and I are quite new to this group,
but we have noticed its ability to reach the people of this area. In my
experience there are anywhere from 40 to 70 people collected out on
Schoolhouse Lane (between Henry Avenue and Gypsy Lane).  

	The crowd assembles in this particular place due to its resident,
Senator Arlen Specter. We hope our voices reach him at his home, so that he
knows there are concerned, registered voters who do not agree with the
continued bloodshed in Iraq. The two of us carry our homemade signs, that
read "End the War" and "We Want Peace," to a small spot on the
side of the road were passing cars can read our cause.  

	We do not just quietly stand, sometimes there is chanting, other
times song, but mostly there is an exchange of ideals and thoughts. As some
automobiles pass, they see our signs and sound their horn. That simple sound
will make Angela and I jump and smile. It is not the sound, but the meaning
behind it. They are saying, "Yes, there is a problem, You are not alone, Our
voice is with you!" It is so beautiful. 
 
	Angela is a senior majoring as a Fashion Designer, and I am also a
senior studying to be a Physician Assistant, at Philadelphia University. We
are both very poor students and in debt up to our eyes. We both wanted to
contribute and fight with others around the world against this war. With
hardly any money and only a small amount of time to give, we were pointed in
the direction of Northwest Greens <nwgreens@yahoo.com>. The group was so
warm that we felt apart of their family right away. This was the chance we
were searching for.  

	Our small contribution to this organization helps make us feel that
we are doing something to oppose our current government's involvement in
Iraq. Angela and I both feel as though our generation is asleep. Spending
more time in front of the TV and playing video games than paying attention
to what is happening all around them. It almost has to hit them square in
the face for them to look and find their friends being shipped off to fight
a war that so many do not understand.  

	Our hope is that people our age will come together and demand that
there be No More War. Angela and I are constantly telling our friends about
the Sundays we spend together. Word of mouth has gotten some of our friends
to join us on these days. Angela and I will continue to join our fellow
protestors all over the world, in hopes that we will not have to fight much
longer.

	Your next chance to lobby Senator Specter will be the Hamburger Hill
Peace Event from 2:00 until 4:00 on Sunday, May 21, near his home, on
Schoolhouse Lane (between Henry Avenue and Gypsy Lane) in East Falls. Join
us in asking the Senator to stand up and author a Senatorial version of HB
4232, which will cut off Pentagon spending in Iraq, except for the orderly
withdrawal of U.S. forces. 

	The battle of Hamburger Hill (Ap Bia Mountain, Vietnam, May 10-20,
1969) resulted in 56 Americans dead and 420 wounded. The mountain was
abandoned by U.S. forces shortly after the battle, and it was re-occupied by
the Vietnamese one month later. Because of the high U.S. casualties for a
pointless goal, members of the U.S. Senate criticized President Richard
Nixon, who ordered a change in military strategy to avoid such losses. For
more information, please call 215-307-7980 or email info2506@prawnworks.net