Being busy about many things, I scarcely remember when I last visited this group, but I knew it was where I wanted to come when the news of Phil Berrigan's death arrived.
    I was a very innocent and obedient young nun in the 60's, and was shocked by the speech and actions of both Berrigans. It was not coincidental that my personal journey "out" of the convent ran parrallel to my growth in awareness of social justice issues. I have long envied those with the faith and courage (and stamina) to face the consequences of their choices, even to accepting imprisonment.
    I strongly encourage anyone who feels called to activism and who has not yet been captured by a Cause, to look over SOA Watch (www.soaw.org). But take warning: it can be a life-changing experience, and as the letter below shows, in this time of the Patriot Act, even the simplest, most peaceful expressions of dissent can have far-reaching ramifications. I have been a peace-keeper at both Fort Benning and Pentagon marches, and there are few experiences to equal that of "Speaking Truth to Power."
    The letter below, together with its list of Prisoners of Conscience currently serving sentences in Federal facilities, is offered in tribute to Phil Berrigan, in solidarity with his family, his brother, Dan, and all who carry on his spirit. May he rest in true and lasting Peace! MB
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Update from SOA Watch
November 29, 2002

"The very essence of the Nuremberg Charter is that individuals have
international duties which transcend national obligations of obedience
imposed by the state."
    Justice Jackson, Chief Prosecutor, Nuremberg Trials


Content of this email:

1) Letter from Joyce

(Joyce is one of the 86 non-violent social justice activists who crossed
onto Fort Benning in November, 2002 and is scheduled to go to trial on
January 27, 2003. The group of the 86 includes many students, teachers,
retirees, catholic sisters, counselors, nurses, homemakers, missioners,
volunteers, social workers and therapists, and also includes an
accountant, an engineer, an airline captain, two farmers, an artist, a
lawyer, a priest, a pastor, a bricklayer, a salesperson, a newspaper
deliverer, a printing manager, and a paralegal. The 86 are from all over
the country and include 35 people under twenty-five years of age and 28
over fifty.)


2) Write to the Prisoners

Prison addresses of those currently incarcerated for crossing the line and
speaking out against SOA violence in November 2001.


_____________________


Dear family and friends,

I wanted to share with you that I participated once again in the protest action at the School of the Americas/WHISC at Ft. Benning, GA this year on the weekend of Nov 17. I have been told not to return with a formal "ban and bar" letter, so there were consequences this year. Let me tell you about them.

I am doing fine. Most important, my soul was at peace and calm and
focused throughout the whole experience because of spiritual discernment and preparation in advance.

You may wonder what happened to me. I was with a group of five people who crossed onto the base together. There was an opening provided for us in the fence and we walked onto the base and then up a hill on the Ft. Benning side to an open area. Military police were waiting there for us and asked us to stop, which we did. They took us into custody, putting plastic wrist restraints on pretty tightly. I asked them to call the Commandant and tell him I wanted to dialog with him and deliver some letters. They refused, but let me keep the letters in my handcuffed hands which were behind my back. We were taken to a large hanger which is where they do the processing. We were told to stand facing a wall in lines about three feet from each other. We were not allowed to talk or turn around. So I started humming softly some peace songs. Pretty soon others picked up on that so we were told we couldn¹t hum either. One Sister at the front of the line said. "Pretty soon, they will say we have to stop breathing, too." We stood as we waited to be processed one by one. For me, that was about half and hour or more. They took our jackets and everything we had on us and put items into a grocery bag which they sealed with duct tape (a new use for it!). I again asked to see the Commandant and was told they didn't think that would be possible. We could only keep on 1 layer of clothes, so I was glad I had on my turtle neck shirt which was warmer than what some people had. They asked for our basic information and photoed and fingerprinted us and then they turned us over to U.S. Marshals (a new development from other years). The Marshals were in another corner of the hanger. They started the process all over again, forms, including our bank account info, fingerprinting etc. I was told I
had to take off my wedding band. I explained that I have arthritis in my knuckles and couldn¹t take it off. "Then we will cut it off" I was told. I knew federal prisoners are allowed to keep their wedding rings so I said calmly, "You will have to cut off my finger before I will allow you to cut off my wedding ring." Another Marshall hearing the confrontation hurried over and told the other Marshall, "We don't do that anymore." The younger 19 and 20 year olds were intimidated with lies and threats as well and several of them were really frightened by it. Then they put us in shackles...heavy chain around the waist attached to heavy handcuffs and a heavy metal cover over than and leg shackles. It was, I am sure meant to be demeaning and intimidating, but if you can picture a silver haired nun about 4 foot 2, waddling off to the bus for transport, with a serene smile on her face, you know, for most of us, it didn¹t succeed.

We were taken to the Muscogee County jail and, again processed...you know the routine by now. We were held in UNHEATED isolation cells, 3 to a cell during this process and issued the prison garb much like hospital employees wear in surgery...v neck, short sleeve tops and pajama bottoms and plastic sandals without backs. The temperature went down to into the low 30's that night and when everyone was processed we were divided into two groups of about 30 women each and taken to the historic Columbus Stockade (circa 1850). We had a large room with bunks with iron frames. Thin plastic covered mattresses, no pillow, a bed sheet sewed into a sack and a thin, raggedy thermal blanket were issued to each of us along with a mug, a toothbrush, toothpaste, small motel size soap and shampoo. But each of us got our own roll of toilet paper..in fact, that was available
in abundance. The communal bathroom had two toilets and a sink that did not work and two shower heads in one corner. The drain was clogged with filth and dead water bugs. It was a pit. There was a dirty mop and bucket in a corner, so I mopped the area as best I could without the disinfectant soap I requested. At least we could use it if we kept our sandals on and rolled up our pants against the water that was always there because the showers overshot the drain for them. We had to use the water fountain on a wall in the larger room for water, to brush our teeth etc. and it sprayed so high and over its drain that it hit the bunk next to it unless we held our mugs in front of the spray to catch it.

We were told we had missed the dinner hour and that we would not be fed until we were awakened at 4:30 for 5:00 a.m. breakfast...but they lied. Once we were all processed in, about 10:00 p.m., trays appeared. Our supper was black eyed peas, mystery meat in thick gravy with grease already congealing on the side and soggy corn bread. Watery and VERY sweet Koolaid was the beverage offered.

There was no heat and they would not give us any extra blankets, so we
shivered through the night. One of the windows which was covered by a
large towel was really a grate to the outside and the cold air poured in. We had a TV set on a large cooler we could watch.

But our entertainment of the evening was the drummers and puppetistas from the vigil who came back on three different occasions through the night to let us know there were supporters outside. It was great to hear them, though we couldn¹t be sure they heard our cheers in response.

It was a miserable night. My legs cramped painfully from thigh to ankle and I got up several times to try to walk out the knots. None of us slept very much. The worst treatment was of those who had brought and needed to have their medications. They were denied access to any medication, even though it was with their belongings at the jail. This includes two diabetics and a number of people on heart medication which they really needed, as well as meds for high blood pressure etc. They continued to ask for over 24 hours without receiving them. Outragous!

On Monday, we went into the courtroom attached to the jail for
arraignment. I was in the first group of 20. Guess what? The air
conditioning was on, even though outside temperatures did not warrant it. So we continued to shiver.

One special moment was when Tom Cleary who is in his seventies and very frail asked the Judge to have the heat turned on because he was so cold and thought the cold he experienced overnight was making him ill. The Judge asked that that be done, but when Tom asked for a jacket, the judge said no. So our attorney, Tom Quigley asked if he could give him his suit coat jacket. He started taking it off and wrapping Tom gently in in and the Judge dismissed the gesture with a turn of his hand. But it was a precious moment and was made even more relevant by the Gospel reading for the following Sunday. It was Matthew 25, the last judgement ..when did I see thee naked and clothed thee? It was the clearest witness of the two kingdoms I have ever seen. Then Tom Cleary said to the Judge that the young man sitting next to him was shivering and needed a coat, too. He asked that a jacket be brought for him, but the Judge said no.

We were all given $5,000 bonds which meant we had to put up $500 each--86 of us. This was also a new, harsher development as we have always been released on our own recognizance before. Actually 23 of us were second time crossers and the government wanted $10,000 bonds for us, which we successfully decreased.

Then it was back to the cells. I had not called to ask for bonding
because I wanted to stay with the young women until they were able to
leave...some of the Hispanic women indicated they didn¹t have anyone to call to post it for them. But the SOA Watch staff called all over the country and money started pouring in for our bonds.   In fact, the 3 Western Union outlets ran out of money, so much was wired. I was out late Monday night, about 10:00 p.m. A Sister from Austin and I had a room together in the Howard Johnson (it is just three blocks from the jail.)

Then we went back to see the last people arraigned on Tuesday before I
left with a 19 year old student on Tuesday afternoon for Milwaukee and
Chicago. I was back in Milwaukee by 6 p.m.

Our trial date is set for the week of January 27. We don¹t know what will happen, but we usually have 6-8 weeks after sentencing to go home on our own recognizance and are given a report date and a prison to report to. That could change, but I don¹t expect it will because people back home will already be upset about how we were treated. My body is a bit achy and tired but I am in good spirits and picking up my life where I left off.

This is probably more than you wanted to know, but I think it is really important for people to see how peaceful, calm, nonviolent direct actions of dissent from U.S. foreign policy are being handled. Imagine what has happened to those being held in Cuba at Guantanamo Bay, and to people of middle eastern descent who have been arrested and questioned since 9/11.

I never felt I expressed my love of my country and its Constitution and founding principles in a more patriotic way than in participating again in the SOA protest. And I will be keeping on, because it is a spiritual journey for me. I will try to live my life with integrity and with love. And, if we have to go back to Ft. Benning next year, I will have to consider returning to witness against this terrorist training camp in our own backyard.

There were about 12,000 participants this year and we were each
individually wanded with metal detectors to enter the area at the gates the Columbus police has assigned for our peaceful demonstration. A solemn funeral procession with the calling out of names of priests, nuns, teachers, union organizers, men, women and children killed by SOA grads is the heart of the events and we decorate the fence around the base with crosses with these names on them and with flowers, military medals being returned etc. The number who crossed around the fence on to the base and were arrested doubled this year. You can read more on the website for the
Columbus Ledger Enquirer (www.ledger-enquirer.com)

We will be in Oak Park tomorrow (Thanksgiving Day) with Jon and Anne and the beautiful Montgomery and Joel and Christy and Judy for a traditional family celebration. Some of you will be quite surprised by what I did. But most of you know about my journey with the people of Central and South America. It is their love and forgivenss and their stories that I have carried in my heart. It is their truth that needs to be told. Especially now. Our love to you and your families,   Joyce

__________________________


2) WRITE TO THE PRISONERS

for more information, pictures, and trial statements visit:
http://www.soaw.org/new/article.php?id=127

Twenty-six womenand men, part of the SOA 37 who were found guilty for
trespassing onto the Fort Benning military base in November 2001 are still incarcerated. Their sentences range from six months of probation to the maximum of six months in federal prison. Those draconian sentences are meant to silence and intimidate all of us. Send letters of support to the prisoners. Their sacrifice and steadfastness in the struggle for peace and justice provide an extraordinary example of love in action.
_________________________

Rev. Charles Booker-Hirsch Ann Arbor, MI 41, Presbyterian minister at
Northside Presbyterian Church in Ann Arbor. Married (to UCC pastor). One child, age 4. Works with Central American refugees. Member of Presbyterian Peace Fellowship and PNAODA (Presbyterian Network of Alcoholism and Other Drug Abuse). Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Charles Booker-Hirsch
#90961-020
FCI McKean
P.O. Box 8000
Bradford, PA 16701
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Jonna Cohen Denver, CO 20, MacAllister College student. Student of
Maharaji, an Indian spiritual teacher. Sentenced to three months in
federal prison, $500 fine

Jonna Cohen
# 90962-020
Phoenix FCI
37900 N 45th Ave, Dept 1680
Phoenix, AZ 85029
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Brigid Conarchy Grayslake, IL 23, Originally from Waukegan, IL. Degree in Theology and Philosophy from St Norberts College. Catholic worker with Little Flower CW in Goochland, VA. Sentenced to six months probation,
$500 fine
_________________________

Kenneth Crowley Houston, TX 60, Parent educator. Catholic. Member of Pax Christi. Sentenced to six months in federal prison, $1000 fine

Kenneth F. Crowley
#90963-020
FPC Beaumont
P. O. Box 26010
Beaumont, TX 77720
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Sue Daniels Pembroke, VA 41, a doctoral student in avian conservation
biology, currently forming a local chapter of the Colombia Support
Network, also active with AWOL (go-awol.org), the Coalition for Justice, Amnesty International, the New River Valley Greens, and the Living Wage Campaign. A participant in a beautiful Reclaim the Streets action in NYC during the WEF (the World Economic [Exploitation] Forum). Lead organizer to bring Vandana Shiva, Ed Herman, and Cecelia Zarate-Laun of the Colombia Support Network to Blacksburg and the Virginia Tech community this Spring.
Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Susan Daniels
#90964-020
1119711
C-4-4
Southern Regional Jail
1200 Airport Road
Beaver, WV 25813
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Mary Dean Chicago, IL 37, Former husband tortured by G-2 (SOA grads) in Guatemala. Affiliated with Catholic Worker, IL, Peace Action and SOAW IL.
Sentenced to six months in a federal prison, $1000 fine

Mary Dean
# 90965-020
FPC Greenville
PO Box 6000
Greenville, IL 62246
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Kathleen Desautels Chicago, IL 64, A Sister of Providence of St. Mary of the Woods IA for 42 years. Ministry includes education, prison ministry and 8th Day Center for Justice for past 16 years. Sentenced to six months in a federal prison

Kathleen Desautels
# 90966-020
FPC Greenville
PO Box 6000
Greenville, IL 62246
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Janice Sevre-Duszynska Nicholasville, KY 52, English as a Second Language teacher to high school students. Activist for Women's Ordination. Mother of two. Affiliated with Women's Ordination Conference, Catholic Action Center, Central Kentucky Council for Peace and Justice, Newman Center for University of Kentucky. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Janice Sevre-Duszynska
#91104-020
FMC Lexington
3301 Leestown Road
Lexington, KY 40511
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Toni Flynn Valyermo, CA 56, High Desert Catholic Worker member and a
Benedictine Oblate at St. Andrew's Abbey, also in Valyermo. Mother of four grown children. Expecting first grandchild in October. Has been
participating in SOA Watch protests since 1998. Sentenced to six months in federal prison

Toni Flynn
#90960-020
Crisp County Jail
196 South Highway 300
Cordele, GA 31015
Incarceration date: 07/12/02
Projected release date: 01/01/03
_________________________

Kate Fontanazza Milwaukee, WI 53, Teacher. Catholic. Member of Pax
Christi, Peace Action and Pledge of Resistance. Sentenced to six months in federal prison, $1000 fine

Kate Fontanazza
# 90967-020
FPC Greenville
100 U.S. Hwy 40, PO Box 4000
Greenville, IL 62246
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Chani Geigle-Teller Salem, OR 19, Student. Works with Oregon Peace Works mobilizing youth for social justice work in their communities. Sentenced to six months in a federal prison, $1000 fine

Chantilly Geigle
FPC Dublin
#90968-020
5675 8th St.
Camp Parks
Dublin, CA 94568
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Peter Gelderloos Harrisonburg, VA 19, Activist and ex-student involved in community and national organizing around environmental, anti-war, anti-captalist and anarchist issues. Currently trying to write professionally. Sentenced to six months in federal prison

Peter Gelderloos
# 90688-020
FCI Cumberland
14601 Burbridge Road, SE
Cumberland MD 21502-8771
Incarceration date: 07/12/02
Projected release date: 01/12/02
_________________________

Nancy Gowen Richmond, VA 68, Mother of seven, grandmother to four. Two
months ago I buried my son, Chuck, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I am a
member of Pax Christi Richmond and Murder Victims Families for
Reconciliation. Thirteen of the last fifteen years I have worked with the homeless population in Richmond, Virginia as a mental health counselor.
Have co-faciliated alternative to violence workshops in the prison system for the Richmond Peace Education Center. Spent time living with followers of Gandhi and working at Mother Teresa's in India. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Nancy Gowen
# 90969-020
FPC Alderson
PO Box A
Alderson, WV 24910
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

John Heid Luck, WI 47, Quaker. Catholic Worker living and working on
social justice issues in the Anathoth Farm Community. Member of Veterans for Peace. Handyman. Sentenced to six months in federal prison.

John Heid
#13815-016
FPC Schuylkill
Camp 2B
P.O. Box 670
Minersville, PA 17954--0670
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 04/10/03
(John is serving an additional month for an ELF action)
_________________________

Linda Holzbaur Ithaca, NY 45, Mother of 4 (3 school age). Peace activist. Part time journalist. Catholic worker. Member of "Keep Space for Peace".
Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Lisa Hughes W. Hartford, VT 36, Catholic background/Mennonite affinity. Raised in Midwest, spent 5 years in El Salvador as a nurse. Moved to Vermont, to begin war tax resistance and organic farming, from Oregon and hospice nursing. Member of War Resisters League. Acquitted
_________________________

Rev. Erik Johnson Maryville, TN 57, Presbyterian Church(U.S.A.) minister, Interim Pastor at Church of the Savior UCC, Knoxville. Married with 5 grown children, 3 grandchildren. 1984 Witness for Peace to Nicaragua. Member of Knoxville Area Committee on Central America, Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance.   Sentenced to six months in federal prison,
$1000 fine

Erik Johnson
#90971-020 MB2
FCI Manchester
P.O. Box 3000
Manchester, KY 40962
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Niklan Jones-Lezama Blacksburg, VA 38, married to Nicaraguan Sandinista, Claudia; two sons, Emilio Jose and Omar Eli. A past co-coordinator for the Coalition for Justice in Central America; 1987 Witness for Peace/Fellowship of Reconciliation/Buddhist Peace Fellowship delegate to Nicaragua and Honduras. Also part of fact-finding delegation to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala. An intern with Global Issues Project in Haiti. Currently helping to build a local chapter of the Colombia Support Network. A Re-evaluation counselor, studying and practicing healing touch and reiki energy therapies for the past four years. Sentenced to six months in federal prison

Niklan M. Jones
# 90972-020
Oklahoma City FTC
7410 S Macarthur
Oklahoma City, OK 73159
Incarceration date: 09/12/02
Projected release date: 03/12/03
_________________________

Rae Kramer Syracuse, NY 55, Domestic violence activist. Member of Syracuse Peace Council and Jewish Peace Fellowship. Sentenced to six months in a federal prison, $5,000 fine

Rae Kramer
# 91096-020
Danbury FCI
Route 37
Danbury CT 06811
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Palmer Legare Springfield, MA Student at Springfield College. From Cabett,VT. Community organizer on low income housing issues. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Palmer Legare
# 91097-020
FMC Devens
PO Box 879
Devens, MA 01432
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Laura MacDonald Syracuse, NY 23, Works with children with disabilities.
Member of Syracuse Peace Council. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine
Laura MacDonald
Incarceration date: 07/12/02
Released: 10/12/02
_________________________

Shannon McManimon Philadelphia, PA 26, Catholic Worker at Martha House CW in Philadelphia. Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Ralph Madsen Newtonville, MA 68, Retired elementary school teacher.
Married, with two grown children. Grandfather. Stationed at Ft. Benning in 1956. Affiliated with Neighbor to Neighbor and Buddhist Peace Fellowship.
Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Tom Mahedy Wall, NJ 39, Married with two children, 5 and 7. Former Navy ROTC. Traveled to Central America with Pastors for Peace. Member of Pax Christi. Sentenced to three months in federal prison

Thomas Mahedy
# 91098-020
FCI Fort Dix
P.O. Box 38
Fort Dix, New Jersey 08640
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Abi Miller Harrisonburg, VA 23, Degree in Biology from James Madison
University. Works at a restaurant in the process of collectivizing.
Involved in a community center project, community garden organizing, and tutoring english as a second language. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Abigail Miller
#90692-020
FPC Alderson
PO Box A
Alderson, WV 24910
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Summer Nelson Missoula, MT 26, Environmental and social justice activist working with the Buffalo Field Campaign and Wild Rockies Earth First.
Visual artist who uses art in activism. Aspiring wilderness survivalist and sustainable community builder doing trail work, organic farming and wilderness therapy programs. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Summer Nelson
Incarceration date: 07/12/02
Released: 10/12/02
_________________________

Fr. William O'Donnell Berkeley, CA 72, member of the San Carlos Foundation
- Sentenced to six months in federal prison, $1000 fine

Bill O'Donnell
#85713-011
Atwater USP
PO Box 01900
Atwater CA 95301
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

David O'Neil Elkton, VA - Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Mike Pasquale Syracuse, NY 33, Catholic. Program Director at Family
Center. Director of International House at LeMoyne College. Sentenced to six months in a federal prison, $1000 fine

Michaele Pasquale
# 91102-020
Unit A-D
FPC Allenwood
PO Box 1000
Montgomery, PA 17752
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 03/10/03
_________________________

Leone Reinbold Oakland, CA, Freedom Rising Affinity Group - Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Rich Ring is 33 years old and lives in Atlanta, where he is a human rights investigator. He grew up in Washington County, New York, and went to Earlham College. He has been an ecologist with The Nature Conservancy, and a Catholic Worker at St. Martin de Porres House in Harrisburg, PA. He is a member of Pax Cristi USA, Pennsylvania Abolitionists, and Georgians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. He learned about the SOA in 2001 from travels in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala and the Autonomous Zones of Chiapas, Mexico. (Click to read his testimony -in Word format- from Georgia.) -
Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Richard M. Ring
#91099-020
Federal Prison Camp
PO Box 2000
Lewisburg, PA 17837
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Maxwell Sadler Edwards Waterville, ME - Sentenced to six months probation,
$2500 fine
_________________________

Kathy Shields Boylan Washington DC 58, Catholic Worker with Dorothy Day CW in Washington DC. Plowshares activist. Mother of 5. Grandmother of 3.
Sentenced to three months in federal prison

Kathleen Boylan
# 20047-016
Range 2
Federal Prison Camp Alderson
PO Box A
Alderson, WV 24910
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Michael Sobol Golden, CO 18, Graduates HS in May. Plans to defer college for a year to work in Guatemala with street children. Sentenced to three months in federal prison, $500 fine

Michael Sobol
# 91105-020
FCI Engelwood
9595 w. quincy ave
littleton, co 80123
Incarceration date: 09/10/02
Projected release date: 12/10/02
_________________________

Lee Sturgis Elkton, VA - Sentenced to six months probation, $500 fine
_________________________

Fr. Louis Vitale, San Francisco, CA Franciscan priest. Pastor of an inner city parish in San Francisco. Working with marginated children and the homeless. Sentenced to three months in federal prison

Louis Vitale
# 25803-048
FPC Nellis CS 4500
North Las Vegas, NV
89036-4500
Incarceration date: 10/02
Projected release date: 01/03

_________________________

Fr. Jerry Zawada Cedar Lake, IN 65, Franciscan priest and Ecumenical. Just back from Palestine. Affiliated with Voices in the Wilderness. Sentenced to six months in federal prison

Jerry Zawada
# 04995-045
Crisp County Jail
196 South Highway 300
Cordele, GA 31015
Incarceration date: 07/12/02
Projected release date: 01/12/02

_________________________

Those who speak out for justice and human rights should not be forced to stand trial, let alone go to jail. Many of the perpetrators of massacres and all of the aiding and abetting School of the Americas (SOA/WHISC)officials who are responsible for the death and suffering of thousands of innocent victims throughout Latin America have not spent a single day in jail; conversely, 26 SOA Watch activists are currently incarcerated in federal prisons and county jails across the US. These activists have been fined thousands and thousands of dollars while the families of victims of SOA violence haven't received one dime of reparations for their loss. 86 women and men are scheduled to stand trial on January 27, 2003. We cannot allow this injustice to continue. As our friends are imprisoned/are
preparing for their trials, we call on communities across this land to
spread the word about the SOA and the reality of US foreign policy.

In Solidarity and Peace,
SOA Watch