Military Families Speak Out

Open Letter to President Obama in Response to the Afghanistan War Escalation Speech from Goldstar Parents Kevin & Joyce Lucey

Letter to Senator Dick Durbin from MFSO Member

Tue, 27 Nov 2007

However you want to think about bringing about redeployment of our troops from Iraq, however you want to slice the pie, it seems to me the most effective thing the Senate can do is just turn off the Niagra Falls money spigot -- just don't send any funding forward. It sounds odd because it means the best thing the Senate can do is......nothing. You might reply, "That doesn't guarantee we'll get redeployment". To which I'll say, "Shoveling more money sure isn�t doing it either."

To Congressman Meehan

As I write this letter my husband has just been taken to surgery to repair damage done to his shoulder largley due to wearing body armor more than 15 hours a day, seven days a week for over 10 months while deployed to Iraq with the Massachussets Army National Guard.

Letter From MFSO Alaska To Senator Murkowski

Mon, 23 Oct 2006

MFSO Alaska members have written another letter to Senator Murkowski urging her to call for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation and to call for all of our troops to be brought home now.

An Open Letter To Senator Murkowski from Families of the 172nd Stryker Brigade

Mon, 18 Sep 2006

This past week Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld replied to letters delivered to him from family members who attended the August 26 meeting in Fairbanks. These letters don�t answer the questions and concerns we posed to him. It is difficult to trust that his interest in speaking with the families of the 172nd Stryker Brigade was genuine. However, we believe a more important aspect of this meeting warrants your attention. Download a pdf copy of the letter.

Open Letter to Congress from MFSO Member Stacy Hafley:

Fri, 04 Aug 2006

People ask me every day "So is your husband home safe?" I usually reply "Yeah, he got home from Iraq several months ago.� What I really want to say and what's usually going through my head at that very moment is, "NO, HE IS NOT SAFE. HE IS NOT OKAY AND HE ISN"T EVEN THE SAME PERSON."

A Letter to Senator Diane Feinstein

My son is a 27 year old staff sergeant in the Army�s 82nd Airborne Division, and he has spent almost 2 of the last 3 years in Iraq. He recently returned home from his 3rd deployment, and for that I am thankful. However, it is clear to me that he will never be the same. I�ve watched him turn from a sensitive young man, who wore his heart on his sleeve and was in awe of being �in the cradle of civilization,� into someone who is filled with so much rage that he can barely speak. You may think his anger is directed at the Iraqis or at those who�ve been variously described as terrorists and insurgents, and on some level you�d be correct. However, those with whom he is most angry sit in Washington, D.C.

Letters to Senator John Kerry

On March 1, 2006, members of Military Families Speak Out, along with an Iraq Veteran Against the War, met with Senator John Kerry in Washington, DC, and delivered the following letters from MFSO members in Massachusetts. The military families were disappointed in Senator Kerry's unwillingness to show leadership and call for the troops to be brought home now.

To Congressman Steven Lynch

Wed, 15 Feb 2006

As constituents and the parents of an Army soldier, we urgently request that you stand up to address this issue (the war in Iraq) by working in Congress to bring our troops home now. We sincerely believe that such action would be in keeping with your oath of office to defend the Constitution of the United States.

My son in Iraq and Senator Ted Stevens

Sun, 02 Oct 2005

Every night, shortly before I go to bed, my son wakes up in Iraq. Thinking about him there strains my memory, wanting denial to be an option so I can freely imagine riding a bicycle beside him, or having a beer with him during an evening of shooting pool. One image of youth, one of a young man, both wishing they didn�t have to compete with the reality of thinking about him as a soldier in a hostile land.

A Letter to Maine and Vermont Members of Congress and Staff Members

Fri, 02 Sep 2005

Over the past several days I have been struck by the similarities between the chaos in Iraq and New Orleans. One major difference is that the media have been more critical and questioning about the debacle in New Orleans/Mississippi/Alabama.

Worlds Apart

Wed, 27 Jul 2005

" When you�re a Governor, making difficult decisions is part of the job description. Just ask the chief executives of 33 states who attended the 97th annual meeting of the National Governor's Association in Des Moines, Iowa on July 15-16, where they had to choose between boots, bats, or bucks. The 233 pairs of combat boots -- one for each National Guard soldier killed in Iraq � were the focal point of a Memorial service co-sponsored by American Friends Service Committee and Military Families Speak Out to honor the citizen soldiers."

An Open Letter to Congress: The Iraq War

Thu, 30 Jun 2005

By Denise Thomas. "We were already in a major war and another one would have stretched our military resources to the limit (which it did). Gulf War Syndrome had never been addressed, and as I feared, our soldiers are becoming mysteriously ill AGAIN. We did not build up the numbers of our military past peacetime strength before engaging in this war, and we had no strategy to keep the peace."

Letter to Tony Blair

Thu, 19 Aug 2004

By Maxine Gentle. " To Prime Minister Tony Blair, My name is Maxine Gentle and I am 14 years old. I am the sister of Fusilier Gordon Gentle who died in the war in Iraq on the 28th June 2004. I want my thoughts and feelings to be heard and known. My feelings are that I think you are rubbish at your job. You don't care about the British public, armed forces or anyone in fact."

Capito, others in GOP use visits to Iraq for photo ops

Sat, 17 Jan 2004

By Robin Godfrey. "Congresswoman Shelley Capito has pronounced her plan to go to Iraq because, she says, she supports the troops. These free junkets for Bush's lackeys like Capito, who got us into this mess, should be banned. They are nothing more than cynical, tax-paid photo ops; they are an abuse of and very disrespectful to our soldiers, and can only interfere with their work."