Pastors indicted

Pastors indicted for SOA protests
A report from the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship

Two Presbyterian ministers to be prosecuted in SOA protests

[5-21-02]

by Marilyn White, past chairperson of the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, and current editor of their newsletter, Briefly ...

As protesters gathered in Washington, DC on April 19 to begin a weekend of advocacy and direct action in opposition to military aid to Colombia and to continued operation of the School of the Americas, SOA Watch organizers announced that they had just learned from the federal government that 43 persons will be prosecuted for nonviolent actions at Fort Benning last November. Among the 43 are the Reverend Erik Johnson of Maryville, Tennessee and the Reverend Charles Booker-Hirsch of Ann Arbor, Michigan. A trial date has not yet been set, but the defendants told Briefly... that they expect to be tried in Columbus, Georgia in late June. They face up to six months in prison and $5000 in fines for crossing onto the Georgia base which is home to the School of the Americas. The prosecutions represent an escalation of government action against the annual November vigil because twenty-four of those charged, including Chuck Booker-Hirsch, were first-time arrestees who had never been issued ban and bar letters prohibiting them from entering the base.

Chuck is a National Committee member of the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship and pastor of Northside Presbyterian Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He and his wife, Amy, a UCC pastor, are parents of a five-year-old son, Drew. Chuck participated in an earlier Fort Benning protest in 1998 in which no arrests were made. He was arrested in an SOA protest at the Pentagon in the spring of 2001, but charges were dropped when federal prosecutors decided not to bring the case to trial. When he learned that he would face trial in Columbus this summer, he commented, "Frankly I am not shocked... And I'm pretty certain that they are going after first-timers to teach us all a lesson. Too bad for them that, once we get finished with our witnesses to them and to the world, the lessons that will be taught will be to them."

Erik Johnson is the interim pastor of Church of the Savior UCC in Knoxville, Tennessee. He has a previous arrest at Fort Benning, as well as arrests in connection with many civil disobedience actions at Oak Ridge nuclear weapons facility. His wife, Libby, was arrested and fined in the April 14 action at the Y-12 plant at Oak Ridge (see Arch Taylor's article in the new issue of Briefly). Erik has nothing but praise for the way his congregation has reacted to the news of his possible prison sentence, saying, "The folks there have said that they will stand by me and insist that the interim ministry go on as planned, dealing with the unique challenges as they arise."

The timing of the announcement raised suspicions that it was intended to deter participation in an anti-SOA civil disobedience action outside the Capitol building on Monday morning, April 22. Nevertheless, an estimated 3,000 people participated in an unpermitted march which began at 7:30 a.m. near the Washington Monument and processed up the mall and into the streets leading to the Capitol. A PPF contingent participating in the march included Jim Atwood, Jane Strange, Marilyn White, and Bill Galvin. Police on motorcycles and horses blockaded the streets near the Capitol. However, the march continued, flowing around the obstacles. Eventually police surrounded the demonstration and herded the marchers into a grassy area outside Upper Senate Park, and then illegally detained the group for an hour before finally letting the protest enter the park for a final, permitted demonstration. Thirty-seven people participating in affinity group actions were arrested when they sat down to block various entrance intersections around the Capitol. Among them was former SOA prisoner of conscience Ruthie Woodring, daughter of a Presbyterian minister.

During the course of the weekend in Washington, over 75,000 people gathered in the name of global justice to speak out against deadly U.S. policies. Voices rang out for justice on many fronts: to call for an end to the alleged "War on Terrorism"; to demand justice for Palestinians; to order an end to corporate globalization; and to demand a change in U.S. foreign policy to Colombia and to close to the US-terrorist training school, the School of the Americas. The different messages of each event came from a common thread: the desire to create a new world where global and domestic policies are rooted in humanity, not power, and people, not profits. Despite the often-torrential rainfall, thousands came for the weekend's events that included rallies, lobbying, teach-ins, and skill trainings.

Other Peace Fellowship members and friends participating in various mobilization events were Anne Barstow, Tom Driver, John and Paula Ewers, Dwight Lawton, Christa and Daniel Galvin, Gary and Chess Campbell, Andy Schoerke, George Taylor, Julienne Oldfield, Ensign Leininger, Jenny Anticoli, John and Anne Elder, Joanne Robson, David Trickey and family, and a contingent of about a dozen from Jan Hus Presbyterian Church in New York City, led by their pastor, Ruth Garwood.

Two Presbyterians from Dayton continued their advocacy efforts after returning home to Ohio. John and Paula Ewers were arrested and charged with criminal trespass and resisting arrest in the Columbus, Ohio office of Senator Mike DeWine on Tuesday, April 30. Eight other activists were also charged in the action. The ten represent civic groups throughout Ohio that have tried for two years to meet directly with DeWine - always unsuccessfully. On April 30 they insisted, as constituents, on a definite date for a meeting with the senator - and they refused to leave his office without the promise of a timely appointment. DeWine helped to craft "Plan Colombia," which provided $1.3 billion in mostly military aid to Colombia. He now supports further increases in military aid and funding to chemically eradicate coca crops. Just before the sit-in, John Ewers stated, "Senator DeWine cares a lot about keeping the children of Ohio healthy. We insist that he care as much about the children of Colombia." John was released from federal prison in January after serving 6 months for protests against the School of Americas in Georgia. He and Paula are awaiting word on a court date for these new charges.