Reply #43: If DU is,

[H2O Man]

as Mr. Pitt has suggested, a "community," then I would suggest that: {1} there is relatively little to gain by focusing on if she "speaks for" anyone but herself; {2} there are potential advantages accrued from recognizing that she "speaks as" a representative of the publicly identified anti-war movement (thus allowing serious discussion of the concerns you mention, which I do appreciate); and {3} from the stance of an anti-war community, we should be focused on who we -- including she -- "speaks to" .... because that is the avenue that leads to progress.

It is impossible to view a picture while standing inside the frame. I suspect that is true in this case: Cindy surely believed that her t-shirt would send an important message. From outside the frame, it is clear that her face in the audience would have sent the clearer message.

A few of the less insightful on another discussion forum have scolded me for suggesting that anyone should advise her on choices of tactics. This is foolish. Not to compare the loss in two cases, I will mention how, in 1998, a racist hate gang attacked my nephew because they didn't like brown people. My nephew was getting regional media attention for his basketball and leadership skills, including holding a kid from NYC who was featured in a 14-page Sports Illustrated article to 2 points. A gang of 15 men savagely attacked my nephew, and left him for dead in a field being used for a parking lot.

My brother-in-law and sister wanted to let the public know about the dangers posed by this type of hatred. This included their concerns about the gang leader getting a $50 fine for having an open beer at the start of the assault,but no penalty for his punching and kicking my unconscious nephew more than a dozen times, leaving him deaf in one ear, and with serious physical injuries (he was not able to take advantage of the scholarships he worked so hard for). Again, I appreciate the difference between Casey dying, and my nephew surviving. But my point is that even my nephew's parents, both educated and intelligent, well-spoken people, recognized the benefits of having people with experience dealing with the media advising them. One of my close friends, a retired NYC police officer who was the head of a local NAACP chapter, and I filled that role. Our goal wasn't to speak for others, but rather to speak as members of the community, and to speak to the larger society.