Featured War Resister: Robin Long

Born in Boise, Idaho, Robin Long was raised in a military family, playing with G.I. Joes and dreaming of one day joining the service. Upon enlisting in the Army in June 2003, the recruiter promised that Long would not be sent to Iraq. Long was excited about this chance to serve his country and finally make something with his life, and he headed off for basic training feeling he had made the right decision. "When the United States first attacked Iraq, I was told by my president that it was because of direct ties to al Qaeda and weapons of mass destruction," Long told Courage to Resist in an interview in January. "At the time, I believed what was being said."

Over the next few months, Long's enthusiasm began to wane. His drill sergeant repeatedly referred to Iraqi people as "ragheads" and led the troops in racist cadences. When Long protested, he was punished by senior officers and alienated by his peers. At this point, Long began to suffer a crisis of conscience. "I was hearing on mainstream media that the U.S. was going to Iraq to get the weapons of mass destruction and to liberate the Iraqi people, yet I'm being taught that I'm going to the desert to, excuse the racial slur, 'kill ragheads.'"

After basic training, Long was transferred to the nondeployable unit at Fort Knox. Upon meeting soldiers returning from Iraq, Long was horrified by their stories of violence and brutality. Soldiers bragged about their "first kills" and showed pictures of people they shot or ran over with tanks. "I had a really sick feeling to my stomach when I heard about these things that went on," he said.

In 2005, Long received orders to go to Iraq. The only soldier to be deployed from his unit, Long received a month's leave to check out of Fort Knox and report to Fort Carson, Colorado. He was scheduled to deploy to Iraq a few weeks later.

While on leave, Long educated himself about the "behind the scenes" story of the Iraq invasion. He talked to friends about whether to go through with his deployment. By his scheduled departure day, Long had made the decision not to go. He skipped his flight and stayed in a friend's basement in Boise over the next few months. From there he caught a ride to Canada. "I knew that my conscience couldn't allow me to go over there (to Iraq)," he said.

Long spent the next three years building a life for himself in Canada. He met a woman, had a child and established contact with other war resisters in Canada. Long applied for refugee status on the grounds that he was being asked to participate in an illegal war and would suffer irreparable harm if he returned to the United States. Not only was his bid rejected, but Canadian authorities responded by mandating that Long report his whereabouts every month. He eventually settled in Nelson, a small town in British Columbia. Despite the fact that the Canadian Peace Alliance,  the War Resisters Support Campaign, and the New Democratic Party have supported Robin, on July 15, 2008 Army PFC Robin Long became the first U.S. war resister since the Vietnam War forced to leave Canada and turned over to the U.S. military. Forced to leave what he came to call home in British Columbia, he is currently being held at the Naval Consolidated Brig at Miramar, CA where he is serving a 15-month sentence for his conscientious objection to what he felt to be an illegal and unjustwar in Iraq.

Read an update from Prisoner of Conscience, Robin Long:
Robin Long. September 21, 2008

I am locked up at The Naval Consolidated Brig at Miramar, just North of San Diego. It’s quite a change from Nelson, British Columbia, where I have called home. I feel as if I have been torn away from my home, family and friends! I feel as if I was a pawn, a gift from one regime to another (Harper to Bush).

For my Canadian friends, and people I don’t know, Stop this! Fight this! Don’t let another conscientious objector, war resister, person of conscience and morals to be deported.
For my fellow Americans, keep courageously driving on to stop this war and undo the mess that the last 8 years of Bush has brought to our great country. I have received many letters of support. We are strong! We can be an example. We can spread the word and mobilize and protest the atrocities. It is easy for me to be locked up knowing I stood up for what is right! This is but a bump in the road. They will never grind me down! I will only come out stronger! And guess what? I can now protest from within this country!

Peace love light

My favorite quotes
“A soldier is just a uniform following orders. A warrior is a person who stands up for what is right even in the face of adversity.”
“Those that can get you to believe absurdities, can get you to commit atrocities!” - Voltaire
“If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything” - Jimmi Hendrix
“We can bomb the world into pieces, but we can’t bomb it into peace!” - Michael Franti

Click here for the Original story

Click here for Robin Long's letter of support to Israeli Objectors

Robin Long's Letter to Barack Obama

Click here for more info on Robin Long