New tactics

Activists regroup to spread message

By:Sally Goldenberg
   "It ain’t over ’til it’s over" is the mantra of local anti-war activists.
   Somerset Voices for Peace and Justice held a vigil Saturday in Health Choices Holistic Massage School on Township Line Road to express their uneasiness with the U.S. military presence in Iraq.
   In order to strengthen their viewpoint in the face of criticism from local residents, the new organization invited three unlikely speakers: the mother of an Army enlistee; a Vietnam War veteran; and the son of a woman who died in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 each expressed opposition to the war.
   "This whole idea came about because every time the organizers tried to talk about peace as an option, the three answers they would get were, ‘Well, if you had somebody in the service you wouldn’t feel that way. If you had somebody impacted by terrorism you wouldn’t feel that way. If you were a veteran you wouldn’t feel that way,’" said township resident Maryellen DeCoster, whose son is stationed in Kentucky during his first year with the U.S. Army.
   Ms. DeCoster deemed waging war a poor solution to the political oppression in Iraq.
   The pediatric nurse said her opposition to what she views as an unjust war stems from her work with sick and injured children.
   "I also see the money being spent on the war as literally taking money out of the mouths of children all over the world, but also in the United States and even in New Jersey," Ms. DeCoster added.
   Contrasting Saturday’s indoor event with weekly anti-war protests held on the corner of Route 206 and Amwell Road every Saturday, Ms. DeCoster said the most recent event gave the group more credibility.
   She and fellow demonstrators often met hostile passers-by who screamed obscenities and waved middle fingers in the air. But Saturday’s speakers weakened the arguments faced by anti-war demonstrators, she said.
   "A man approached us on Route 206 and another man approached us at the vigil in Somerville and said, ‘I bet you have nobody serving in the military.’ My being able to say, ‘Yes I do’ gave me more credibility," she said.
   James Della Bella, whose mother Andrea Della Bella died while working in the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001, said he is irked that politicians and war-supporters use the terrorist attacks as an excuse for war.
   "I’m tired of them getting up there and (saying) ‘This is for the families of 9/11.’ I never wanted it. My mother never wanted it," said Mr. Della Bella, a Morris Plains resident.
   After the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, Ms. Della Bella questioned the United States’ foreign policy, Mr. Della Bella explained.
   While some people may feel the war in Iraq evens the score set on Sept. 11, Mr. Della Bella said his grief persuaded him to oppose military action overseas.
   "I don’t want people to have to feel the pain that I went through," he said.
   As the political climate changes overseas, the thrust of the organization follows suit, said founding member Anne Kindfield, a township resident.
   Instead of holding signs that read "No War on Iraq," the activists now display signs promoting liberal media outlets, Dr. Kindfield said. One sign reads "Educate Yourself: 99.5 FM" to support the talk radio station, she added.
   "My primary goal is for people to just have the information," she said.
   So while the fighting may be slowing down, Americans should still educate themselves on the issues surrounding the war and its aftermath, she added.
   Dr. Kindfield and the speakers agreed that events such as Saturday’s vigil have an air of preaching to the choir because most participants already support the position the organizers promote.
   But a public expression of anti-war sentiment could educate those on the fence about the war, they conceded.
   "The effect of my speech at the moment was preaching to the choir," Mr. Della Bella said. "The long-term effect is building a network to expand."