Sunday, Oct. 7, marked the 11th anniversary of the Afghanistan war.
The United States continues to spend money on the war—more than $500 billion to date—and the human cost has included the lives of more than 2,000 U.S. personnel and thousands of Afghan civilians. Yet ending the war hasn't really been part of the public debate surrounding the elections.
Across the country, AFSC programs and partners marked the anniversary over the weekend by reminding their communities that the longest war in U.S. history continues.
Sixty percent of Americans want to bring the troops home as soon as possible. In Illinois, Public News Service asks if the war is still worth the cost. They talked to AFSC’s Michael McConnell, who says that those who want to control the U.S. budget deficit need to consider the reason for a huge portion of the deficit—the “credit-card” wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Read more.
Saturday, a memorial event in Kansas City included readings and spoken word performances, centered around an art installation, “Unfinished Portraits.” As time passed, portraits of U.S. troops killed in the Afghan and Iraq wars became more and more obscured by darkness.
On Saturday and Sunday, AFSC was among 50 organizations supporting Occupy Portland, Not Afghanistan, a rally, march, and teach-in to protest the 11th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and marking one year since the start of Occupy Portland.
Sunday's March of the Dead in Providence mourned the costs of war. Dressed in black, participants marched through Down City and read the names of U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians who have died during the 11 years of war.
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