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  • David Johnson

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May 10, 2007

College students protest Iraq War

By DAVID JOHNSON

In response to a challenge by an Iraq War veteran, Goshen College students organized a protest and marched through Goshen Wednesday in opposition to the war.

On March 21, 22-year-old Iraq War veteran Liam Madden told Goshen College students that college-aged people are the forefront of social change. Madden has formed a petition with active duty servicemen that will continue until troops are withdrawn.

After his speech, GC junior Bethany Loberg sent a mass e-mail to the campus in hopes of starting a discussion group on the Iraq War.

Madden had been featured on the television shows CNN and 60 Minutes and publicly speaks against the Iraq War.

He struck a chord with the group of Goshen College students who walked from the college to the Elkhart County Courthouse while holding signs that read “We Mourn The Dead” and “Bring The Troops Home.”

“We sympathized with him particularly because of how similar in age he is to us,” said Loberg of the 22-year-old Marine.

Loberg and freshman Ben Bouwman formed a group called “Thoughtful Opposition to the War in Iraq,” and are planning further protest walks for next fall, possibly walking in South Bend or Chicago. In March, 15 members of the group flew to Washington, D.C, to attend a peace vigil protesting the war.

Wednesday, the group of approximately 44, dressed in black, was led by students holding a sign that tallied the number of casualties since the war began — 3,377 U.S. soldiers and 430,000 Iraqi civilians. The sign is displayed every Wednesday at the courthouse by Goshen community members who read the names of soldiers who died during the previous week.

Driving by the protest Wednesday, Goshen resident and U.S. Army veteran Kenn Madison reacted saying, “I’m a veteran and I tell you I support our troops. There are no bigger heroes than the soldier, much bigger than the athletes people look up to that make millions ... When somebody joins the Army, they should all tell themselves ‘There is a chance I will lose my life,” he said.

He said of the students walking down Main Street, “I can appreciate those who show concern over lost soldiers. Peace is always greater, but sometimes war is a necessary evil.”

Respond: (574) 533-2151, ext. 310

dave.johnson@goshennews.com

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