Speaking Truth to Power Ten Years Deep

By Kathy Zager on 10/10/2011 @ 05:56 PM

Tags: Afghanistan

The tenth anniversary of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan came this past week, on Friday October 7th. I had the privilege of attending a panel briefing hosted by the Congressional Progressive Caucus Peace and Security Task Force. The panel was called “Ten Years On: Why the War in Afghanistan Must End Now.” It was a showcase of opposition to another decade of war by leading experts and members of Congress. The panel was conceived of and organized together by Rep. Barbara Lee’s office and FCNL.

This is a photo of FCNL's Matt Southworth, Rep. Barbara Lee (CA), and me at the briefing.
I was impressed by the testimony, at times incredibly heart-wrenching and at times simply brilliant. All of the panelists were speaking truths that I wished all of our lawmakers could have heard. I was particularly impressed by Brock McIntosh, an Army National Guard Specialist with a pending conscientious objector application. He spoke from a strategic perspective, explaining in clear logic why continuing to fight in Afghanistan is completely antithetical to stated arguments for remaining at war, and directly opposed to U.S. and global security. To read more about this panel and to check out the impressive testimonies, click here.