Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Iraq War supporters bring opinion to U. Montana protest
By Keriann Lynch
Montana Kaimin (U. Montana)
03/21/2006

(U-WIRE) MISSOULA, Mont. — As over 200 students gathered for an anti-war protest Monday afternoon on the University of Montana Oval, four men slowly walked to the edge of the group, stood next to 579 wooden crosses and raised homemade signs.

"Hug a veteran we owe them," read the front of one poster board. On the back, "We support our troops, the war, our President," was scrawled in black marker.

"When I was over there (in Iraq), all I saw was protesters and it was disheartening," said Kellan McDonald, a University of Montana junior and political science major. "These people have the right to protest, but I don't think they realize some of their remarks are really cruel and hurtful for the people and families making sacrifices in this war."

McDonald and fellow protester Jason Hendrickson served as an infantry specialist and sergeant, respectively, in Iraq, beginning June 28, 2004. The two returned to Missoula, Mont., last November.

"I'm here to help my buddies protest for peace, but mostly to support the troops over there," said Hendrickson, a sophomore in the radio-television department. "People need to understand peace is an ambiguous topic and that a lot of people over there don't have much say in what's going on unless they have four stars on their shoulders."

Two other soldiers stood off to the side of the protest; unable to comment while in full uniform, the two silently watched the crowd and listened to the speeches. Several members of the College Republicans joined McDonald and Hendrickson, and the pro-war group grew to about 25 students.

"It's important to show there's not just one voice on this campus; there's another voice that supports this war," said freshman Will Selph, a representative on the State Board of College Republicans. "People shouldn't leave here thinking we're one-hundred percent the [University of California at] Berkley of the north."

As protesting intensified, comments were exchanged in bursts between the otherwise segregated groups of protesters.

"Smote me down," screamed one anti-war protester as war advocates chanted, "Move to Canada."

"Hadley Stephens said, 'When opinions clash, democracy reigns,'" said Selph, a political science major. "It's important to have both sides heard, because that's democracy in action."

Junior Julie Chase-Boehmler, an anti-war protester, agreed having both sides represented was important, and stressed a difference between supporting war and supporting troops.

"It needs to be made clear there's a big difference between being a soldier and being a government official," Chase-Boehmler said. "It's a good and noble job, and I think it's a shame how our government is taking advantage of good people."

Freshman James Rees said he wanted to support the war and the president because he was from Washington, D.C., and his father was in the Pentagon on Sept. 11.

"Bush was voted by our country into presidency, and those who don't like it (the war) should take a look at September eleventh," Rees said.

McDonald and Hendrickson agreed the war in Iraq was important in preventing terrorism.

"I wish we could have peace, but we have to go to Iraq because terrorism would come here and then we'd be asking why we hadn't done anything," Hendrickson said.

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