Spring Break
Sheehan Supports Peace
Kate King
Issue date: 12/6/05 Section: News
Cindy Sheehan spoke of war, peace and liberal activism to an audience at the Student Union Theater Monday night.
Sheehan's appearance was sponsored by the Progressive Student Alliance (PSA), a group that encourases and promotes liberal activism on campus. During her speech, Sheehan said she has spoken at many colleges across the nation, but UConn was the first school where the students, rather than the administration, invited her.
After a brief introduction from Amy Vanheuverzwyn, a 5th-semester individualized major and member of PSA, Sheehan began her speech by reading a passage from her recently published book "Not One More Mother's Child."
In the excerpt, Sheehan spoke of the first few weeks after her son's death and how she entertained thoughts of suicide to end the pain of loss. According to Sheehan, it was a poem read to her by her daughter and her anger at the Bush administration that motivated her to become an outspoken liberal and anti-war demonstrator.
Although Sheehan first gained the attention of the mainstream media for her 26-day anti-war protest near Bush's home in Crawford, Texas last August, she said her activism began long before that.
A few weeks after her son died in April 2004, Sheehan joined the Military Families Speak Out organization, which opposes the Iraq War, and then founded her own group, Gold Star Families for Peace. Since then she has spoken at college campuses and at peace protests nationwide. Among her numerous rallies was an anti-war demonstration in front of the White House in September where she was arrested and charged with demonstrating without a permit, according to MSNBC.com.
She said she has received many threats from different people, but refuses to let them slow her down.
"I'm not courageous and I'm not brave because I don't have any fear," Sheehan said. "I might have guts and I might be fearless, but I don't have courage because when a mother buries her child she has nothing else to lose."
Sheehan's appearance was sponsored by the Progressive Student Alliance (PSA), a group that encourases and promotes liberal activism on campus. During her speech, Sheehan said she has spoken at many colleges across the nation, but UConn was the first school where the students, rather than the administration, invited her.
After a brief introduction from Amy Vanheuverzwyn, a 5th-semester individualized major and member of PSA, Sheehan began her speech by reading a passage from her recently published book "Not One More Mother's Child."
In the excerpt, Sheehan spoke of the first few weeks after her son's death and how she entertained thoughts of suicide to end the pain of loss. According to Sheehan, it was a poem read to her by her daughter and her anger at the Bush administration that motivated her to become an outspoken liberal and anti-war demonstrator.
Although Sheehan first gained the attention of the mainstream media for her 26-day anti-war protest near Bush's home in Crawford, Texas last August, she said her activism began long before that.
A few weeks after her son died in April 2004, Sheehan joined the Military Families Speak Out organization, which opposes the Iraq War, and then founded her own group, Gold Star Families for Peace. Since then she has spoken at college campuses and at peace protests nationwide. Among her numerous rallies was an anti-war demonstration in front of the White House in September where she was arrested and charged with demonstrating without a permit, according to MSNBC.com.
She said she has received many threats from different people, but refuses to let them slow her down.
"I'm not courageous and I'm not brave because I don't have any fear," Sheehan said. "I might have guts and I might be fearless, but I don't have courage because when a mother buries her child she has nothing else to lose."