The Spark

the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist

“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx

Active Duty Soldiers Say:
Bring the Troops Home Now!

Oct 30, 2006

A group of active duty soldiers has put out a call, asking their comrades to express opposition to the war in Iraq. This is the first time since Vietnam that a group of soldiers has publicly voiced opposition to a war.

The group, the Active Duty Military Project, has posted online an “appeal for redress” calling for the troops to be brought home. Active duty soldiers can go to the website, www.appealforreddress.org, and sign their names to the appeal.

In just a few days, the number of soldiers who had signed the appeal had gone from 65 to more than 650. The group plans to present the appeal, with all the names of its signers, to Congress on Martin Luther King Day in January.

In theory, soldiers who do this are protected. But as any soldier knows, there are always consequences for those who speak out.

It’s why the numbers who sign the appeal signify a much larger sentiment in the military. The number of names on the appeal is just the tip of the iceberg of active troops who op1pose this war.