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SOA Watch founder speaks to UWG students
By Kristal Dixon
News Editor
kristaldixon @ gmail.com
The Rev. Roy
Bourgeois, an outspoken
critic of the School of
Americas at Ft. Benning,
Ga., spoke to UWG students
and faculty last Tuesday.
Bourgeois spoke about
many topics ranging from
his activism against the SOA
to the current war in Iraq.
His lecture was
designed to get students
involved in questioning the
policies of the government.
He related his experience
with the rhetoric in the
Vietnam War with current
sayings of the Iraq War.
“War kills hope
and that is exactly what
happened to me when
I was in Vietnam,”
Bourgeois stated.
Bourgeois also said
that many of the war’s
proponents will not have
the experience of losing a
son or daughter in the war
against Iraq or fighting in
the war.
“Those who talk this
macho talk won’t go to
this war. They will sit in
the comforts of their radio
stations and homes,” he
said.
Bourgeois also
criticized the members
of Congress who voted
for the war, saying that
he would “like to go see
Banners display pride
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Photo by Josh Grubb
Student organizations and residence halls show off their banners to celebrate UWG’s
Homecoming this weekend. The West Georgia Wolves will be taking on the North
Alabama Lions Saturday at 3 p.m. at Grisham Stadium.
“7 he Student \ dice at the l 'niversity of West (leorgia since 1934"
Photo courtesy of SOA Watch
The SOA Watch and its volunteers hold an annual protest In Ft. Benning, Ga. to commemorate the victims of the 1980
killings in El Salvador
those who declared it
[war] go and fight it.”
Bourgeois criticized
the Catholic Church on
being mum on the situation
in Iraq by saying, "It's like
Iraq doesn't even exist.
It is never mentioned
in our church. This is a
disgrace.”
Bourgeois’ experience
with the Vietnam War
proved to be a turning point
in his life. He said he signed
up for enlistment because
it was the patriotic thing
to do and that “when our
leaders said we had to stop
the spread of communism.
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I believed that.”
Coming from a small
town of Lutcher, La., he
stated that he was raised
in a culture that didn’t
question the policy makers
of this country.
While in Vietnam,
Bourgeois said that it was
around this time when he
started to question the use of
violence to establish peace.
“I began to see in me
that the violence I carried
around would get me
killed,” Bourgeois said.
After serving in
Vietnam, he was ordained
a Catholic priest in 1972,
www.thewestgeorgian.com
and went to work for the
poor in Bolivia. What
he saw while in the Latin
American country would
change the rest of his life.
In 1980, he went on
to El Salvador and became
heavily involved in fighting
for the rights of the poor in
that country .
Also, four American
churchwomen, two of
whom were really close
friends of his, were
brutally raped and killed
by Salvadorian soilders.
This was the event
that got him interested in
U.S. involvement in Latin
Impact of issues main
reason to vote Tuesday
By Tim Sowers
Staff Writer
tsowersl @my.westga.edu
This is the last
publication of the paper
before the elections, the
next time this paper is read
the country will be set on
a different path, no matter
what party wins.
The editorial section
of the paper this semester
has been the center of
a number of political
debates.
No matter what one’s
views are on the issues
discussed, it is clear that
there are a number of
questions facing America
with a number of answers.
America’s
involvement in Iraq does
not have just one possible
course and the more people
who are involved in the
discussion the more ideas
and options are developed.
The national deficit
continues to grow after the
budget was balanced from
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American politics.
Believing that these,
and other Latin American
soilders and future dictators,
were graduates of the School
of Americas, Bourgeois
became an outspoken critic
of U.S. foreign policy in
Latin America.
He founded the School
of Americas Watch in
1990, which has now' been
renamed to the Western
Hemisphere Institute for
Security Cooperation.
This group researches
the activities of this
school. Also, every year in
November, the group and
1998 through 2001. Last
years fiscal budget cost
the federal government
$248 billion more than it
collected.
America’s energy
policy and dependence
on foreign oil are not
a “natural” course of
political action. They are
the result of a long trend
of political decisions and
policy objectives.
These are obviously
not the only issues that are
facing the country, but they
are all likely to be effected
by the decisions made
by our state and federal
governments.
Since the problems
confronting America are
the result of choices made
by past politicians they
can be remedied by the
politicians of the future, if
chosen carefully.
Most people wouldn’t
leave a major decision of
their life up to someone
else. So why should
anyone leave the answer to
thousands of others gather
at Ft. Benning to protest
the school’s presence and
to remember the victims of
the 1980 slaying.
Bourgeois believes
that the school trains Latin
American soldiers to torture,
among other things. He
also states that the school's
training is all funded by U.S.
taxpayers’ dollars.
Last November,
Bourgeois said, more than
half of the 19,000 people
who descended onto Ft.
Benning were college
students.
The annual descend
onto Ft. Benning is a
peaceful one, lasting from
Friday when they arrive
until Sunday afternoon.
The wave of support
of young people his
movement has received
has continued to grow
every year.
He stated that it is
important that “we either
live our lives and make
decisions rooted in our
experiences or make
decisions that never upset
our loved ones.”
While shutting the
SOA will be a major
accomplishment. Bourgeois
did state that their mission
will not stop there. He
said that more work needs
to be done in the area of
changing U.S. foreign
See SOA. page 3
the questions confronting
America up to others?
In the time remaining
in this week, everyone
should take the time to
become informed on the
issues that are of interest to
him or her.
Political cynicism is
a popular temptation for
many college students.
People perceive
politicians as corrupt
individuals who do not do
service to the constituency
they are elected to
represent.
This is only possible
because of a lack of
accountability for
politicians. The only
guaranteed check on
corrupt politicians is
elections.
Theses issues will
eventually have very real
impacts on all lives of
Americans.
On next Tuesday,
please remember voting is
a great reason for students
to play hooky.