A Letter To Cindy Sheehan: Darkness Comes Just Before Dawn

It was sad to read Cindy Sheehan’s letter of “resignation” from the peace movement because she offered so much of herself—despite all the personal pain she suffered from the loss of her son, the breakup of her family, and all the vicious and insensitive attacks on her politics and personhood.

I could feel her frustration and exasperation with Democrats who patronized her only to end up supporting the war in the end. I share her anger at elements of the “peace movement,” which is really a movement in pieces, often marching in lockstep with Congressional Democrats and only paying lip service to the grassroots constituencies and the many who have given and suffered so much to oppose this bloodbath in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Cindy inspired the following she built because she was a genuine convert to activism, an articulate mainstream person who put her body on the line and spoke truth to power with an unmistakable sincerity.

Her honestly and energy contrasted sharply with the agenda-driven caution of those on the Hill and the many organizations that think politics is about raising money online to fund political commercials in the mainstream media or occasionally take symbolic stands.

It was not surprising that she would burn up in anger and burn out in energy.

In some ways, she reminded me of another “indigenous” leader in another movement years back who I was blessed to know: Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer of Ruleville, Mississippi, a share cropper turned civil rights activists who gave the movement its soul and who ended up, years later, alone, unknown and unappreciated.

Like Cindy, Fanny Lou gave her movement its authenticity and its voice. She is remembered, in part, for saying, “I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

Cindy got sick and tired too, of all the cowardly deal-making and betrayals. She wrote bitterly to Congress and then about herself:

“How can you even go to sleep at night or look at yourselves in a mirror? How do you put behind you the screaming mothers on both sides of the conflict? How does the agony you have created escape you? It will never escape me… I can’t run far enough or hide well enough to get away from it.

By the end of September, we will be about 80 troops short of another bloody milestone: 4000, and MoveOn.org will hold nationwide candlelight vigils and you all will be busy passing legislation that will snuff the lights out of thousands more human beings.”

Personally, I know how she feels. When I made the film, WMD (Weapons of Mass Deception), challenging the media role in the war, many anti-war groups paid lip service to its message and then did little or nothing to promote it. Perhaps that’s why some activists call MoveOn.org “WalkOn.org” when it comes to the issues of media deception or for that matter any issues that also hold Democrats and corporate media institutions accountable.

It is so much easier and emotionally self-righteous to attack easier targets like the Republicans and Bush White House.

Lets face it, the media has not really changed and nor have many Democrats. They believe in convenient truths and don’t recognize the importance of demanding media integrity. Don’t forget that most of the media coverage was hostile to Democrats setting a timeline and many pundits pressured them to relent in the name of pragmatism, patriotism, or getting the pork they wanted for their own districts.

I don’t think Cindy has really resigned from politics. But she is upset and has a right to be. She has lost so much and is also apparently in debt—something this director of the film In Debt We Trust can relate to.

Sometimes I wish I could resign from the media reform movement that I helped organize because it has been so hard for us to get support for MediaChannel.org, our fabulous media and democracy online network now in its 7th year. We will have to close our doors in a month unless we can find the funding to keep our modest operation alive.

Unfortunately, our movement, like many others, has a hard time working together and prefers pricey conferences, “events” and behind the scenes lobbying to mass outreach, education and organizing. Again, it’s predictable to bash Fox News rather than focus on all the biased coverage across the spectrum.

We need help to keep going, even as some of our original backers suffer “funder fatigue,” turning away from supporting long term movement-building work and independent journalism in favor of celebrity-oriented events that get their names in the paper.

Cindy, please don’t leave us—understand that frustration, factionalism, fatalism and infighting is part of the process of dissent and often makes working for peace or media change an ordeal.

You need a long-term perspective and a willingness to fight like a warrior.

Your son Casey perished in one war, please don’t allow yourself to perish in this one. Understand that it is a war, and in wars, you don’t win every battle. The goal has to be—and I say this with love and respect—to live to fight another day. It’s always dark just before the dawn.

– News Dissector Danny Schechter blogs for Mediachannel.org which has sent out an emergency SOS for help to assure survival. To comment and for more information write: Dissector@mediachannel.org

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I believe Sheehan said something like she did not want to deal with politicians anymore. She will try other humans instead. That is a good idea because the political system can not be changed, it is right where those “special interests”, Guns, Oil and Drugs, want it to be. Would she talk of the faux opposition party and dare address the impossibility of democracy? Being stung again and again by the ersatz liberal media which provides bread, circuses and attack dogs was the last straw.

you have to be kidding

GOODBY and GOOD RIDENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!:)

Cindy Sheehan has fought the good fight and though mortally wounded, has won the respect of thousands who could not escape here message.

People do not make war, governments do, and it is always for power and greed. The children of America are little more than fodder for the war machine.

Cindy Sheehan can take pride in knowing that if she saved the life of just one American child, and I have no doubt that she is responsible for saving many, she did her sons unfortunate and untimely death justice.

Negativity presents a cluttered field that often renders all positive action seemingly futile. Regenerate your emotional energies Cindy, then like a true warrior, don your armour and prepare yourself for the next fight.

As an activist myself, I can feel both your anguish and frustrations. Nothing is more difficult than to try and influence the idle-minded and today the land runs ramphant with them, but we must perservere for the sake of our own salvation.

May God bless you in all your future endeavors.

Michael

The amount od evil doings is so overpowering that any hope for recovery is an illusion. The entire system, called democracy has to collapse and maybe than something new will come.
Cindy, stay put, do not throw yourself to the wolfs, protect your own sanity for the distant future. The same advice is for many other good and proud citizenns of this country.
Soldiers are just cannon fother and they should understand it.
Anybody supporting the system is insane or simply evil.

Ok, whatever. I am sorry she lost her son. Having been to Iraq twice I saw first hand the loss that people suffer. We, however did not create the “agony”, we just changed the players faces. At least the way it is some of the “bad guys” buy it now. I’m not really sure but at last count I’d be willing to bet that they have killed or wounded more women and children than we have. You would be surprised how much we do to not do just that. You want to really understand? Spend some time there.

cindy sheehan, at least, had the guts to put her own reputation on the line in such a public…which most americans are so afraid to do…afraid their “family and friends” will diss them. are we not a democratic society, free to express our opinions? but no, we cannot if it doesn’t appear to be “mainstream”…then again, what is mainstream if 70% of americans now oppose this ugly “war on terror” which we started. historically we need to see what our actions did to have others attack us. 9/ll was not the “first” step in a volley of violence. we are imperialists first…remember this. we care mostly about the capitalists interests because they are who lobbies our politicians and fills their coffers…make no mistake about it.

yes, danny schecter, i believe, always said it best and continues to. our fight is to gather citizens to oppose political moves..sadly we do not have enough citizens to band together to make our voices heard…50% of our citizens do not vote. shame on us, this democracy we uphold. that’s what we think about voting which we are attempting to implement all over the world. this is a sham.

thank you, cindy and thank you danny!
despair is deadly…let us continue on to bring truth to folks around the world.