On the Frontlines Conference Report Back: Opening Plenary

They set the tone for the day delivering brief speeches about their experiences, where we are in the counter-recruitment movement, and what we need to do to put a stop to war and create real opportunities for youth. All speakers touched on different aspects of the work and their experiences, and they were all given standing ovations from a raucous audience for their contributions.

First up was Kevin Ramirez, who seemed to tie together various events from Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans police brutality, neo-nazi marches in Ohio, to the war in Iraq, repression of counter-recruiters, and how it all comes back to America's racist foreign and domestic policies. You can read his speech here.

Next up to bat was Pablo Paredes, a former US Navy sailor who refused to board the ship that was sailing off with hundreds of Marines to fight the war in Iraq. He spoke of his struggle to reconcile his feelings against war, and his motivation for enlisting. At the time he enlisted, going to war was not on his mind at all, as is often the case when young people are confronted by the military recruitment pitch of financing college and job training. He spoke about his time stationed in Japan and how that truly affected his worldview. He also spoke about the counter-recruitment movement, and how antiwar organizing and protests embolden soldiers to act on their own feelings against war. One thing that differentiates Pablo from Aidan and Joshua was the fact that Pablo was never deployed to Iraq. He knew his job in the US Navy would not put him on the frontlines in Iraq, but he refused to even be in a supporting role for the business of war and for this strong stance the audience gave Pablo a helluva warm welcome!

Next in the lineup was an unannounced speaker, Joshua Casteel. Joshua served alongside Aidan Delgado at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and had much to say about his experiences in Iraq and how he came to become a conscientious objector. His job as an interrogater and Arabic linguist put him in the rooms attending interrogations of detainees at Abu Ghraib. It was this kind of duty and the inhumane treatment of Iraqis that he witnessed, that sparked his ambition to get out of the Army as a conscientious objector. He spoke about the enormous cultural divide that exists between American soldiers and the Iraqi people, and said most of the soldiers in Iraq are in a constant state of "culture shock". He spoke of his faith in God as being a large factor in his decision to get out of the military.

The last speaker was Aidan Delgado, also an Army veteran who served in Iraq as a Humvee mechanic and was discharged as a conscientious objector. Aidan spoke about his experiences growing up in the Middle East and how that shaped his understanding of his time in Iraq. Aidan served at Abu Ghraib prison and recounted some of his experiences there, the nightly mortar attacks, the prison riots, and the inhumane treatment of Iraqis that he witnessed. Aidan applied for conscientious objector status while serving in Iraq and he detailed how his fellow soldiers and command would treat him different because of this. During meals he would find himself seated alone and isolated by others, and his body armor was taken away from him despite being exposed to the same threats of injury from mortar attacks as other soldiers. He said this type of treatment is common for soldiers who speak out against the war.

Before the session was over, the audience was blessed with an inspiring and fiery piece of poetry brilliantly performed by Cesar Cruz. His piece was a critical take on hip hop and Cesar managed to flip many popular hip hop song titles and lyrics on their heads, exposing how corporations have appropriated hip hop music and culture and have turned it into a vehicle for our own consumption and destruction. Now it is time to take hip hop back!

By the end of the Opening Plenary, the energy was extremely high, as folks made their way to the first session of workshops.