By JOE ORSO | La Crosse Tribune [1]
Six war protesters received trespassing citations after what was termed a “friendly” exchange with U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl staff assistant John Medinger in Kohl’s La Crosse office Monday.
The protesters want Kohl to be more active in ending the war in Iraq, bringing the troops home and opposing further U.S. invasions.
Thirty to 40 protesters gathered outside Kohl’s office at 425 State St. about 4:30 p.m. Nine entered the building and spoke with Medinger for more than 90 minutes.
“I would describe the conversation as respectful on both sides,” said Keith Belzer, an attorney who attended as a consultant to the protesters. “The La Crosse Police Department handled the matter very professionally.”
Gail Vaughn, who received a citation, said the protesters and Medinger decided police should be called, as the protesters refused to leave.
“We know from the Hague Conventions and Nuremberg Principles that if a citizen sees that its government is committing war crimes, it is incumbent upon the citizen to try to stop that,” said Vaughn, 54. “Otherwise you’re complicit in the crimes that are being committed by your government.”
Vaughn said she’s lost count of the number of times she’s been jailed for nonviolent protests, but her longest stint was three weeks.
“The lawbreakers are those who have voted for this war and are allowing it to go on,” she said. “That includes Kohl, because he has voted for every single bill and every single thing to allow this war to continue.”
In a statement issued Thursday by communications director Lynn Becker, Kohl said he supports the Levin-Reed resolution that makes it clear to Iraqis the U.S. will not be in their country indefinitely and encourages the administration to begin planning to redeploy forces.
“As I’ve said on many occasions, President Bush misused and abused Congressional authority leading up to the Iraq war, and has made mistakes at virtually every turn,” according to the statement.
June Kjome, 85, a longtime peace activist, also was cited in the protest. She said Medinger was open and listened to the protesters.
“Most of us who know John Medinger know that he is an activist and that he is a peace-minded person and that he actively participates in a lot of the demonstrations and peace vigils,” Kjome said.
Medinger would not comment, saying it was Kohl’s policy.
Belzer said the six will plead not guilty at their Oct. 25 court date. The other four arrested were Matt Stewart, Jeremy Jansen, Chris Vogts and Anita Zibton.
Joe Orso can be reached at (608) 791-8429 or .