Waiting till Nov elections = 350 or more U.S. troops will die in Iraq

If Congress waits until November to act, it is likely that 350 or more U.S. servicemen and women will die along with countless Iraqi children, women and men.


Since March, 2003, on average, over two service men and women have died each day as a result of the war in Iraq; that fatality rate continues in May, 2006. Discussions in Congress about the war in Iraq and exit strategies include many proposals for bringing troops home after the mid-term election in November, 2006. If Congress waits until November to act, it is likely that 350 or more U.S. servicemen and women will die along with countless Iraqi children, women and men.


from May 10 press release Military Families Speak Out

New Addition to Eyes Wide Open Exhibit Highlights Those Currently in Harm's Way Who Will Perish if Iraq War Continues


Contact: Jen Bergman, 206-447-1801, Janis D. Shields, 215-241-7060, 302-545-6596 (cell) - for event info or Katya Kruglak, 703-304-5075, Nancy Lessin, 617-320-5301 - for interviews

News Advisory:

-- New Addition to Eyes Wide Open Exhibit Highlights Those Currently in Harm's Way Who Will Perish if Iraq War Continues

-- Military Families travel to D.C.; tell Congress "No More Deaths in an Unnecessary War!"

Military Families will travel from across the country to Washington, D.C. and help unveil a new section of the American Friends Service Committee's Eyes Wide Open: The Human Cost of War exhibit highlighting lives that will be lost if Congress does not take action to end the war in Iraq. Eyes Wide Open has been a memorial to the fallen, with combat boots and shoes representing U.S. troops and Iraqis who have lost their lives in this war. The new prospective boots display will focus attention on those who are currently in harm's way, who will fall if the war in Iraq continues.

Since March, 2003, on average, over two service men and women have died each day as a result of the war in Iraq; that fatality rate continues in May, 2006. Discussions in Congress about the war in Iraq and exit strategies include many proposals for bringing troops home after the mid-term election in November, 2006. If Congress waits until November to act, it is likely that 350 or more U.S. servicemen and women will die along with countless Iraqi children, women and men.

"This is a poignant and painful addition to the Eyes Wide Open exhibit, but one that all decision-makers should see," stated Larry Syverson of Richmond, Virginia, whose son in the Army is currently serving a second tour of duty in the Persian Gulf. "I hope every member of Congress and Senator visits this exhibit and reflects on the urgency of ending this war. Their failure to act could mean that the next pair of boots that is moved from this section to the section devoted to the boots of the fallen could be my son's."

"The Eyes Wide Open exhibit on the National Mall May 11-14 will pay tribute to those who have fallen," commented Anne Roesler of Saratoga, California, whose son in the 82nd Airborne Division faces a fourth deployment to Iraq, "and the new prospective boots display highlights the need for an immediate end to the war in Iraq so that no more lives are lost in a war that should never have been."

WHAT: Prospective boots display added to EYES WIDE OPEN: THE HUMAN COST OF WAR, the American Friends Service Committees' widely acclaimed memorial exhibit that has traditionally featured a pair of combat boots for every U.S. military casualty, and civilian shoes representing a fraction of Iraqi civilian casualties. The prospective boots display features boots for service men and women currently serving in Iraq, whose lives WILL BE lost if the war continues through November, 2006.

WHEN: Thursday to Sunday, May 11 -14. Families will be gathering onsite at 10:30 AM on Saturday, May 13.

WHERE: National Mall, Washington, D.C. (at the gravel path at 13th Street and Jefferson Drive.)

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW:

Members of Military Families Speak Out -- http://www.mfso.org -- with relatives/loved ones currently serving in Iraq or facing deployment/re-deployment will be participating in a silent march and rally on Saturday, May 13 on the National Mall and are available for interview before or at that event. To schedule an interview with a military family, contact Katya Kruglak, 703-304- 5075, or Nancy Lessin, 617-320-5301. Interviews with Iraq veterans and Gold Star Families who lost loved ones in the Iraq war are also available. For details, contact 215-241-7060.

http://www.usnewswire.com/