Protestors speak out against Afghan war

Wednesday, Oct. 7 saw an opposition to the Afghan War outside of the St. Cloud Barnes and Noble bookstore.

Many activist groups attended the event, including Benedictions for Peace, Pax Christi USA, and Alternative to War.

Among those attending the protest was Eunice Antony who was representing Benedictions for Peace and the party of Pax Christi. 

“We (the demonstrators) believe that spending so much on war is not getting us anywhere, and the way to build peace is to converse openly about the option,” Antony said. “We only build more hatred by killing.”

Pax Christi, among the organizations represented at the demonstration, is also known as the National Catholic Peace Movement, whose statement of purpose is, “to create a world that reflects the Peace of Christ by exploring, articulating, and witnessing to the call of Christian nonviolence.”

Also present was Rita Koll. “It is literally taking bread out of the mouths of children and poor families of this country,” Koll said.

“In terms of the healthcare and how much really goes toward the military budget, we can’t continue to support that.”

“We say we can’t have health insurance because it’s too expensive, but we never think about how much of that money goes to the war effort as well,” Antony added.

“Nobody questions that. It’s sort of untouchable.  There’s something about war that is in our blood, in the way that we always seem to turn to it as the answer. We can be creative enough to find an alternative.