Eugene protester arrested in Georgia.Byline: From Register-Guard and news service reports COLUMBUS, Ga. - About 10,000 demonstrators chanted and waved signs Sunday outside the Army's Fort Benning Fort Benning, U.S. army post, 189,000 acres (76,500 hectares), W Ga., S of Columbus; est. 1918. One of the largest army posts in the United States, it is the nation's largest infantry training center and the home of the Army Infantry School. in their annual protest against a military school for Latin American soldiers on the base. There were a handful of arrests, including that of a Eugene woman. Opponents of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHISC or WHINSEC), formerly the School of the Americas (SOA; Spanish: Escuela de las Américas), is a United States Army facility at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia. , formerly known as the School of the Americas, blame the school for atrocities committed by some of its graduates in Latin America Latin America, the Spanish-speaking, Portuguese-speaking, and French-speaking countries (except Canada) of North America, South America, Central America, and the West Indies. . ``We oppose the violence generated by this school and Fort Benning soldiers. Our way is the way of love with our brothers and sisters who are victims of violence,'' said the Rev. Roy Bourgeois Reverend Father Roy Bourgeois, M.M. is an American priest in the Maryknoll order of the Roman Catholic Church and founder of the human rights group SOA Watch. Early life Bourgeois was born in Lutcher, Louisiana in 1938. , a Maryknoll priest who founded the School of Americas Watch and has been leading demonstrations outside the post for 14 years. The crowd, estimated at 10,000 by Columbus police, was the largest yet for the annual protest, said Eric LeCompte, the weekend demonstration's organizing coordinator. ``We believe our nonviolent action was effective,'' he said. Between 30 and 40 protesters crossed onto fort property Sunday and some were arrested for trespassing, said William Quigley, a legal adviser to protest organizers. Among those arrested was 73-year-old Peg Morton of Eugene, a Quaker and longtime peace activist A peace activist is a political activist who strives for peace, and against war. Peace activists are part of the peace movement. The role played by peace activists in preventing wars have been questioned in a paper published by Dr. . Morton was jailed Sunday and expects to be arraigned and released today, said Michael Carrigan of Eugene, who spoke with one of eight other protesters from Eugene and surrounding areas who took part in the protest. Morton could conceivably receive a jail sentence jail sentence jail n → peine f de prison of three to six months, Carrigan said. About 2 1/2 years ago, Morton held a two-week fast and vigil at the Federal Building in Eugene in protest of the Army School of the Americas. Last November, she traveled to Fort Benning to fast during a second protest of the Army school. More recently, Morton this summer staged a peace vigil and fast at the state Capitol in Salem to draw attention to the state's budget crunch and loss of services A deprivation of a family member, such as a parent or spouse, of the right to benefit from the performance of various duties, coupled with the privation of love and companionship, provided by the victim of a personal injury or Wrongful Death. for poor and ill Oregonians. School of the Americas Watch School of the Americas Watch is an advocacy organization founded by Maryknoll Fr. Roy Bourgeois and a small group of supporters in 1990 to protest the training of mainly Latin American military officers, by the United States Army, at the School of the Americas (SOA). holds the demonstrations every November in memory of six Jesuit priests who were killed along with their housekeeper and her daughter in El Salvador on Nov. 19, 1989. Some of the killers had attended the school. Last year, 84 people, including some elderly nuns, were arrested for trespassing. Some of them served up to six-month sentences in federal prisons. Army officials defend the school, saying it trains soldiers in civilian and diplomatic affairs, and that human rights courses are mandatory. |
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