Edited by Gargoyle news staff


Posted Thursday, May 24, 2007, The OG, news

[Note: This article was prepared and submitted by Gargoyle contributor and protest co-organizer Shara Esbenshade. The Gargoyle encourages students to submit articles and information about the activities their organizations are involved in.]

A GROUP OF concerned high school students — including more than half a dozen from Uni — will take dramatic action Saturday to address American complacency and political inaction with regard to the war in Iraq.

The students will do a visual form of protest to bring home the reality of the war's death and destruction: 20 youths will fall to the ground in unison at the intersection of Green and Wright streets in front of the Alma Mater statue.

They will repeat this “die-in” every time cars stop for the red light from noon to 1 p.m. They will remain on the sidewalks and enter the intersection only during the 20 seconds when no cars may go. In this manner they will not be disturbing traffic. Everyone is invited to attend.

The Uni students who plan to participate include juniors Shara Esbenshade, Erin Hayes, Rachel Hurley, Marika Iyer, Larissa Pittenger, Kumars Salehi, and freshman Alexx Engles.

With this protest the students are publicly demanding that U.S. Rep. Timothy Johnson of Urbana and Sens. Barack Obama and Richard Durbin support legislation calling for the redeployment of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Said Esbenshade, co-organizer of Saturday's protest: “This war has killed too many, and we urge our politicians to do their part in ending it, because that is why they were elected. It is time they begin to respect their constituents, nearly 70 percent of whom oppose the war.”

Letters have already been sent to Johnson, Obama, and Durbin.

But the goal of this creative protest is also to bring the war and the urgency of the situation in Iraq to the attention of the Champaign-Urbana community.

“This Saturday we will fall for the fallen in Iraq,” explained Mitali Purkayastha, co-organizer of the die-in.

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