Madison Veterans for Peace

Clarence Kailin Chapter 25

VETERANS URGE ACTION IN QUEST FOR PEACE from The Capital Times 5/26/2008 Lynn Welch

Robert Koehler, Memorial Mile at Olbrich Park (McMahon photos)

It takes more than showing up and applauding to win peace. "We have to fight for it. We have to build it. We have to create it," Clarence Kailin said Monday in opening the Veterans for Peace Memorial Day Peace Rally.

Kailin, 94, knows something about fighting. He volunteered with the Abraham Lincoln Brigade during the Spanish Civil War fighting against Gen. Francisco Franco's army.

But Kailin, a self-avowed socialist and namesake of Madison's Veterans for Peace chapter, is no fan of war.

"War is the last thing we need. I tell you that from personal experience," he said.

Kailin was among those urging personal action from people attending the rally Monday afternoon at James Madison Park. The event also included a memorial reading of the names of 94 Wisconsin soldiers who have died in Afghanistan and Iraq with bagpipe accompaniment, and a red carnation ceremony.

The local Veterans for Peace group also this weekend erected its Memorial Mile display of 4,700 white grave markers along Atwood Avenue, across from Olbrich Gardens. The display calls attention to the human cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The rally is a way to remember those who have died without glorifying war, according to organizers.

"The best way to honor the dead is to end the war," said Richard Chamberlin, a Vietnam War veteran and chapter member.

David Williams has attended the rally each year since moving back to Madison from Chicago in 2004. A veteran war protester, Williams believes he has to bear witness now, just as he did in opposing the Vietnam War on the UW-Madison campus.

"The people voted against the war in Iraq in November 2006 but we haven't seen action," Williams said. "I think (congress) has betrayed the will of the people."

Iraq veteran Dan Kaufman said he signed up to serve in Iraq because he thought he could make a difference. But, speaking during the event, Kaufman explained that he misinterpreted the threat. The Iraq war has changed the fundamental tenets of the country, Kaufman said.

"The USA was replaced by the homeland. Freedom has taken a back seat to fear," Kaufman said. "I stand before you as an American who loves what this country stands for. If we fail those ideals, the principals of this country will fade."

Fran Wiedenhoeft, a veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq, asked people to seek creative solutions to ending the Iraq war, saying she believes if we simply pull out, women and young children will suffer most.

The fight for peace and justice is tough, but not hopeless.

"We have a two-fold job ahead of us and it will take everything we have," said Chicago-based journalist Bob Koehler. "We have to end the war now and we have to bring a peace consciousness to our culture at large."

It's a lifelong commitment, Kailin reminded.

"I hope all of you become active activists, because it won't happen itself," Kailin said. "It takes a lot of work."