Posted on 03/21/2003 10:41:09 AM PST by PetroniDE
Tension between "pro-U.S." and anti-war groups at "teach-in"
Veritable battle lines were drawn in front of the M.D. Anderson Memorial Library on Thursday as emotional debates on the war issue ensued at a "teach-in" organized by UH faculty and staff.
Flash points of heated arguments popped, but eventually fizzled without great incident, when student demonstrators calling themselves not necessarily pro-war, but "pro-U.S.A.," congregated outside the anti-war gathering of professors, UH staff and students, who started organizing at 10 a.m. Thursday.
Sarah Brantly, a public relations senior, said she walked by the large rally, listened to what they were saying and wanted to voice her own opinion.
"I went down to the U.C. and bought a posterboard," Brantly said. "I borrowed a marker and made a sign."
Her sign read, "I support our country."
Eventually, Cara Anderson, a media production junior who made her own sign in support of the troops, joined her. The pair grew to a handful of like-minded individuals who started hollering.
When they were noticed by members of the rally, a large convoy of demonstrators, led by Cheyenne Bsaies, a creative writing junior, split from the main group, confronted the "pro-U.S.A." group and offered the microphone.
Eddie Barrera, a political science senior, took the microphone and spoke briefly, saying that the troops now in Iraq needed their support.
Bob Buzzanco, a UH history professor and one of the architects of the rally, intervened shortly afterward. Buzzanco took the microphone and said, "They can share their views, fine, but they have their ABC, NBC and CNN, they can do it there," alluding to criticism of the media for not covering the anti-war perspective.
From that point on, the rally continued, but the crowd had split into two distinct groups -- one dedicated to the "teach-in," the other participating in debates.
An estimated crowd of 300 students were in attendance, though the number ebbed and flowed throughout the day, eventually waning when the rally broke up in the early afternoon.
The "teach-in" was largely intended to promote the anti-war point of view through informative lectures, literature readings and personal stories. Several speakers noted the lack of "true" facts about the Iraq crisis being presented to the public.
Rick Brennan, who graduated from UH in 1999 and now teaches in HISD, addressed the culpability of the mass media in the current standoff with Iraq.
"The peace movement is a global movement, yet it is largely unreported in the mass media," Brennan said, citing commonly accepted facts such as the concept of no-fly zones and Iraqís rejecting inspectors in 1998 as "falsifications used to justify aggression."
Brennan called the gathering before him a "rebirth of democracy."
Brennan blamed these grave errors on a "corporate-driven" mass media. He urged the audience to do their own research and "discover the truth about this war."
Buzzanco read selections of Allen Ginsberg, an author and poet of the 1950s, known dissident during the McCarthy era and activist against nuclear weapons.
Onlookers stayed distant from the large crowds and many of them were skeptical of the rallyís intent.
"It's too late. They're wasting their time; this protest doesnít really matter," Cody Johnson, a freshman business major, said.
"It just seems too political. It's more so anti-Bush than it is anti-war," Johnson said.
Johnson said he saw some anti-war demonstrators get very angry and "kinda violent" when they were approached by supporters of the war.
Brantly later said that two "pro-U.S.A." students in uniform were spit on by angry demonstrators.
"They were just angry at them, spitting, cussing, all of that," Brantly said.
One member of the "teach-in" audience received a citation for mooning several "pro-U.S.A." demonstrators, but no other major incidents were reported.
Gotta love them lovers of "PEACE".
HUH?!?!?!?
Gee, that's a shame.
I don't know about the media in Houston, TX but in most of the USA, the "anti-war" rallies have gotten more media coverage than the Pro-American rallies, totally disproportionate to their support nationwide. Of course, he's in the delusional world that the 70% US support for war is part of a "vast right wing conspiracy".
Cheyenne Bsaies, a creative writing junior, split from the main group, confronted the "pro-U.S.A." group and offered the microphone.
Note to prospective parents: If you name your daughter “Cheyenne” don’t complain when she grows up to be a dopey hippy, majoring in “creative writing.”
Sounds more like it is a "re-education center" to indoctrinate more useful idiots and red dupes.
"The peace movement is a global movement, yet it is largely unreported in the mass media," Brennan said, citing commonly accepted facts such as the concept of no-fly zones and Iraqís rejecting inspectors in 1998 as "falsifications used to justify aggression."
Yes it is a global movement... of marxists, communists, socialists, anticapitalists, anarchist-socialists, etc. The same nuts that protest at the World Trade Organization meeting, burn down McDonalds in France, etc. I fail to see how he can claim that the protestors have not gotten media coverage. Some of them claimed to oppose Clinton's wars as well but none of those protests (if they held any) got any press. This protest movement has gotten legs from a complicant media because of the (R) after the name of the man elected to the White House.
The media has been silent on the political nature of those who organize and FUND the protest rallies. The media has spun it as a grass roots effort of concerned citizens around the world. It is not. Also it is not a peace movement as they support the Palestinian war movement and even support the use of suicide bombers.
The "peace" movement said that there was no proof that Saddam was stockpiling banned weaponry. They doesn't know where those Scuds could have come from...
He should spend more time in class.
Might be good to include some examples from the left's lack of outrage at the "unprovoked" Dec 1998 attacks on Iraq:
President Clinton explains Iraq strike (FLASHBACK to 1998, worth reading)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.