Sharing the city of Denver with the Democratic National Convention this week is a gathering of activists, delegates and elected leaders from across the country, sponsored by The Progressive Democrats of America and The Nation. Progressive Central – the Central Presbyterian Church at 1660 Sherman Street – has already been the site of great conversation about progressive issues, with more scheduled over the coming days. Monday saw PDA panel discussions on “Healthcare NOT Warfare”; that afternoon, the “NOT Warfare” discussion featured Ann Wright – retired United States Army colonel and retired official of the U.S. State Department; and a representative from Iraq Veterans Against the War – talking about the sexual abuse of women soldiers. As regular readers of this site know, Col. Wright has been an invaluable ally of the parents of PFC LaVena Johnson in their fight to have the case of their daughter’s death in Iraq reopened. A video of Col. Wright’s portion of the discussion is available:
Also on the “NOT Warfare” panel were Rep. Lynn Woolsey, Co-chair CPC and PDA Advisory Board member; Norman Solomon, author of Made Love, Got War: Close Encounters with America’s Warfare State; and Kathleen Snyder, Gold Star Mom.
The full schedule of Progressive Central events is available online, and the Progressive Central flyer can be downloaded.
LaVena Johnson (In Memorial) Where Is The Justice?
Just when you think you
Domestic Violence
Domestic Violence is a worldwide crime sadder than sad,
Woman was created for companionship not a punching bag,
God never intended for her to be sexually abused and beat,
Or forced to cheaply sell her body on the corner of any street.
A man can severely beat his spouse, be arrested, make bail,
Run over a duck & ducklings in some areas, 6 months in jail,
Gets her teeth knocked out, black eye, the face looks like crap,
People want to know what she did to make him act like that.
Even in the military where females should be more than safe,
Less likely to be wounded than she is to be savagely raped,
Not by the enemy who threatens death to muffle her cries,
But by soldiers wearing the same uniform, on the same side.
In a court of law a man punches his girlfriend, grabs her neck,
And the judge jumped over the bench, attempting to protect,
While cameras were rolling as all this can be easily viewed,
You can watch it over and over with access to You-Tube.
Many look like they have been in a championship fight,
Quickly running to friends or relatives to spend the night,
Only to be beaten even worse upon returning the next day,
Now she
As a amry wive- I know first hand how a lot of the soilder & officers are abusive to their wives in every way you could think of. I have been through it myself and 9 out of 10 military wives that I have met has been abused in some form by her soldier. But the truth is kept hidden behind closed doors and a smile. Especially if he is a vet- you have to honor him- you have to respect him- you have to fake it or you feel like an outcast. PROUD army wives is what we are suppose to be and when the truth is spoken you are the one looked down upon and mistreated. An incident I had w/ my spouse right before his deployment lead to jail time (Not military jail) But the military got involve and did their investigation. I will never forget the call i got from not one but two women claiming they were on my side and here to help me if needed. When I wnet for the interview the woman in charge took down my statement- She said to me, ” I know your husband such an officer & such a nice man- now tell me the truth did he really hurt you bad enough to have to go to jail for an evenimg- THIS could cause him his caree, ” get this part “If not handled properly” I told my statemnet truthfully as i did with the county cops and two day later the Military dismissed my case and said they found no proof of spousal abuse. The county Jail put him on probation nd made him take a 6 week class- Teh army wrote to teh judges office to get his record cleareda nd a week later he was handed orders to go to Afghanistan- delayed from his orginal orders – not punished at all by the Military for what he did to me but yet send to war to go over ther and abuse young wome & girls. You see where I ma going w/ this right. This kind of abuse found fatal that happened to your baby- starts in the homes of many of the Military officers – and is swept under the rug time & time again. So i the soilder can beat, rape and cheat and do all sort of things to their own wives- what will stop them from doing it the other women in the military. You are 100% right- it’s time for a change!
Please excuse the poor grammar, misspelled words and typo- I get very emotional when I tell my story. :-(