Cindy Sheehan joins Thanksgiving Camp Casey anti-war protest in Crawford, Texas

Crawford, Texas (November 24, 2005) - Returning from his China getaway, Bush has again been met outside his ranch near Crawford, Texas by people from across the state and country, demanding an immediate end the US occupation of Iraq.

Renewing the Camp Casey protest vigil in central Texas yesterday, a dozen anti-war activists challenged the county’s recent laws against camping or parking on the side of any public road. Those arrested included Daniel Ellsberg, former diplomat Ann Wright, and DeDe Miller, Cindy Sheehan’s sister. They are charged with trespassing and obstructing the road. They were sitting in the ditch along a county road, and no obstruction occurred. Each of these Orwellian criminal misdemeanors carries a possible 180 in jail, and a $2,000 fine.

The “legal” Camp Casey II has again been erected on donated land at the foot of one of the access roads to the Bush ranch. Like many folks around the country, Camp Casey gathered for a Thanksgiving meal today – but ours was traditional Middle Eastern fare.

Under a large white tent, Bill Mitchell described how he first joined a local anti-war protest in his hometown of San Luis Obispo in Southern California when the war first started. He carried a sign that read, “Bring my son home now.” He noted that he soon got what he asked for, but that his sign should have read, “Bring my son home now, alive.” He later helped found Gold Star Families for Peace with Cindy Sheehan.

Daniel Ellsberg, the Pentagon Papers whistleblower, held the tent’s undivided attention with endless tales of civil disobedience against unjust laws and policy. He turned serious when he expressed his doubts that “American justice” and civil rights as we know them would not survive the next 9/11. To Daniel Ellsberg, one important question is how many of us will speak out when the government targets immigrant communities and political opponents are rounded up and placed in detention camps. We should not wait until then, now is the time to resist, he concluded.

Wrapping up Thanksgiving in Crawford, dozens of supporters and media welcomed Cindy Sheehan upon her return to Camp Casey. In a brief statement at the small airport terminal, Cindy expressed confidence that the August vigil outside of the Bush ranch played a key part in starting a new national dialog on the Iraq War. Many people feel that history may record Camp Casey as a turning point in the war without end.