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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (April 14, 2011)
W H I S K E Y R I V E R R A N C H P R E S E N T S viewpoint THE BY PEG MORTON HANK SHREVE BLUES SHOWCASE FEATURING APRIL 14TH DEB CLEVELAND A P R I L 2 1 S T G A RY M A Z U R E A P R I L 2 8 T H B R I A N C H E VA L I E R EVERY THURSDAY FROM 8PM TIL MIDNIGHT • 4740 MAIN STREET, SPRINGFIELD LANE COUNTY’S BEST RESTAURANTS, STORES, AND RESORTS The PRICESMASH Guarantee >af\Ydgo]jhja[]afDYf];gmflq7O]ddeYl[`all`]f SMASH IT BY 3 % ! Shelf Price, Sale Price, Discounted Receipt, E^`bmbfZm^Jnhm^lP^ee[^ZmbmZee Starving for Change A fast in protest of militarism in Latin America M y name is Peg Morton and I am from Eu- gene. I am a Quaker, now 80 years old, and have been committed to closing the SOA/WHINSEC (School of the Americas/ Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Co- operation) for many years. I have previously fasted on the steps of my hometown federal building for two weeks, have lobbied, and have attended the giant demonstrations at Fort Ben- ning for about 10 years. I crossed the line at Fort Benning and served three months in a federal prison. Why am I so committed to this SOA Watch movement to close the school and end the expansion of militarism in Latin America? In 1987 I traveled to Nicaragua to stand with the people in the war zone. In 1989, while I was studying Spanish in Guatemala, fi ve Jesuit priests were massacred in El Salvador, and Sister Diana Ortiz, who had studied at my Spanish language school, was kidnapped and brutally tortured. In the 1990s I traveled to Guatemala to accompany some of the thousands of returning refugees, and to participate in the fi rst anniversary of the assassination of the courageous human rights Bishop Juan Gerardi. Later, I traveled to Chiapas in southern Mexico after the Acteal Massacre by paramilitaries of a group, called the Abejas, who were committed to nonviolence. In 2006 I traveled to Colombia to a rural peace community, San Jose de Apartado, to honor one of its leaders who had been assassinated along with his family. While there we visited the crowded, dangerous barrio near the top of a mountain outside of Bogota, where thousands of Afro-Colombians live, displaced from their small farms along the Pacifi c Coast, so that large plantations of African palms could be planted. Each time that I traveled south, as I met and learned from courageous survivors of these atrocities, I became more deeply aware of the role of the U.S. government. The U.S. military trains and works in coordination with Latin American militaries to enforce economic trade and other policies that benefi t international corporations as they seek natural resources and profi ts, killing thousands and driving millions from their lands. My experiences live in my heart and will never go away. In recent years, I have devoted my attention to the notorious School of the Americas, which has trained Latin American militaries to torture and massacre. To this day, graduates of this school are committing atrocities and undermining democratic movements, for example in Honduras and in Colombia. I am honored to be a part of a struggle that is committed to nonviolence, which will increase the presence of love in the world. Peg Morton of Eugene is participating in SOA Watch Fast, April 4 to 10, a “Fast for Peace and Justice and to End Militarization: Hungry for Justice, Starving for Change.” WORKING THROUGH CONFLICT LESSONS FROM THE STREETS OF NORTHERN IRELAND 7:00 p.m. • Tuesday, April 19, 2011 282 Lillis Hall • 955 East 13th Avenue items will not be sold below cost Staffed by experienced Gardeners, NOT Salesmen! Come See REAL hydroponic growing in action by REAL hydroponic experts! 623 W. CENTENNIAL SPRINGFIELD 541-636-3552 LOADING DOCK & ADDITIONAL PARKING IN THE REAR OF THE STORE. Now Open Specializing in Helping People and Patients Obtain Oregon Medical Marijuana Program Cards NIGEL GARDINER ANNA MURRAY Regular Office Hours Monday-Friday 10am-4pm Project Offi cer, Peace and Reconciliation Group Derry clinics on saturdays Project Coordinator, Ex Prisoners Interpretive Centre Commander, Ulster Defence Regiment, Retired Londonderry Sponsored by the University of Oregon Carlton Raymond and Wilbert Ripley Savage Endowment for International Relations and Peace, the Department of Geography, the Clark Honors College, and the Confl ict and Dispute Resolution Program FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL 541-346-4500 6 APRIL 14, 2011 EUGENE WEEKLY call for appointment 570 Lawrence St., Suite 101 Eugene, OR 541-344-1688 • fax 541-344-8110 www.chroniccareinc.com WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM
