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Nearly a week after the third anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, local peace activists reiterated their objection to the war and continued their unrelenting call for its end.
As part of the Socialist and Marxist Studies Spring lecture series, a group of University of Maine professors and peace proponents spoke Thursday.
The lecture entitled “The Iraq War: Lessons Three Years after the U.S. Invasion and occupation.”
The panel included professors Michael Howard and Doug Allen of the philosophy department, professor Alex Grab of the history department and Ilze Peterson of the Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine.
They spoke to a small audience in the Bangor Room of Memorial Union.
According to Grab, the U.S. goal is not to democratize Iraq, but to control, dominate and exploit.
“There are three reasons why the U.S. invaded Iraq,” Grab said. “The first is oil, the second is oil, and the third is oil.”
Speaking only a few hours before U.S. Sen. Susan Collins’ lecture in Hauck Auditorium, the speakers adorned themselves in black attire in order to “mourn, not celebrate,” the arrival of Collins and her “support of the Iraq War,” as they justified their anti-war convictions by using history and geopolitics as a guide.
According to Allen, the War in Iraq signifies U.S. militarism, imperialism and a drive to remain an economic power during a period of decline.
“The notion of terror to overcome terrorism, violence to overcome violence, is counterproductive,” said Allen.
Instead, Allen and the rest of the panel promoted multinational peacekeeping to replace the current U.S. policy of unilateralism, along with the immediate removal of troops and military bases.
Although the Bush Administration claims that an immediate troop pullout would plunge Iraq into further violence and chaos, Howard believes that their argument only seeks to prolong occupation indefinitely.
Howard described the war as a “tissue of lies and distortions.”
“The longer the U.S. stays in Iraq,” said Howard, “the more polarization will occur.”
According to Ilze Peterson, the coordinator of the Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine, the goal of the global anti-war movement is to “build a culture of peace.”
She mentioned the significance of nationally recognized protester Cindy Sheehan, who lost her son in the Iraq War.
Audience members attending the discussion also cited the importance of discussing the Iraq War, and galvanizing the citizenry to act.
“The biggest danger is apathy,” said Alex Lehning, a fourth-year history major.
“Once war becomes part of the daily news cycle and part of the mainstream, it becomes really dangerous.”
The Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine will continue its anti-war campaign on March 25 by sponsoring the “Real Security Hearing” at UMaine to discuss alternatives to the war in Iraq.
The event will take place from 12-5 p.m. in Neville Hall. It will include keynote speakers Richard and Rita Clement who are Maine residents and parents of an Iraq war veteran.
