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Dr. Bill Kumbier Professor of English |
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Peace
Awareness Group forms to protest war with Iraq Managing Editor
Two
Southern professors are members of a new four-state group that s
seeking innovative ways to peacefully protest the possible war with
Iraq. Dr.
Bill Kumbier, professor of English, and Dr. Gwen Murdock, professor of
psychology, joined the month-old Peace Awareness Group to let their
voice be heard about President Bush s proposal for military force
against Iraq. None
of us in the group deny whether or not Iraq is a concern, Kumbier
said. We just don t see the evidence in order to make the sacrifice
war requires. The
group has 10 organizers who meet about the conflict and how they can
peacefully protest possible war. Last week, the group held its first
event with a peace march from Ewert Park to Spiva Park in downtown
Joplin. More than 100 people, including Southern students, attended. It
went really well, Kumbier said. Kids, students and seniors all
walked. Kumbier
said one of the group s crucial arguments is how the United States
needs to work with the United Nations when dealing with Iraq. We
should cooperate with them, he said. When we work through the
United Nations, we are working peacefully. When we re the aggressor,
it s more difficult to handle conflict peacefully. For
Kumbier, spending time and ideas with people with the same thoughts and
opinions gives him peace of mind. I
get a really good feeling that I m not alone, he said. There are
a lot of people that want to talk about this. Murdock
joined for similar reasons. I
was concerned about the war in Iraq, Murdock said. I felt like my
voice wasn t being heard. Murdock
said she and friends spend a great deal of time writing letters to state
representatives and local newspapers about their ideas on how the United
States should handle another Middle East conflict. It
was time to do something, Murdock said. She
thinks there are many people who have misconceptions about protesting a
war. People
who weren t around in the 70s have a distorted image about what war
protests were about, she said. There are a lot of different ways
to protest the war. The group is looking for new members. Kumbier said anyone interested can send an e-mail of inquiry to peaceawareness@planet-save.com. |
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Dr. Bill Kumbier Professor of English |