Report from Day 8 in Crawford
Not in Our Name Bay Area held for an Emergency Rally in Support of Cindy Sheehan for Friday, August 12th at Powell and Market in San Francisco. (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | Audio) The South Bay Mobilization announced two San Jose support rallies to take place at 5pm on Friday. Karen Bernal from Sacramento for Democracy is set to join Cindy Sheehan in Crawford on Saturday. Meanwhile, Bernal's husband will be part of a Saturday, August 13th demonstration at 16th & Broadway in Sacramento from 6:30-9 pm (Photos).

Last week, Vacaville resident Cindy Sheehan decided that she would pay a visit to George Bush while he is on vacation at his ranch in Crawford. Sheehan's son Casey was killed in action in Iraq on April 4th, 2004. She last met with Bush two months after her son died, before war supporters found out that the Bush administration had lied about its reason for going to war. Cindy Sheehan arrived in Crawford on August 6th and plans to camp out until he “tells me why my son died in Iraq. I’ve got the whole month of August off, and so does he.”

Cindy Sheehan has been joined in Crawford by some 700 people who have come out to protest Bush's war policies. Bush has sent national security adviser Steve Hadley and deputy White House chief of staff Joe Hagin out to talk with her. At last week's Veterans for Peace convention, she said, "We’re not freer here, thanks to your PATRIOT Act. Iraq is not free. You get America out of Iraq and Israel out of Palestine and you’ll stop the terrorism." On the Meet with Cindy website, Ms. Sheehan is asking for people to sign a petition demanding that President Bush meet with her. Sheehan was informed that on Thursday, she and her companions would be arrested if they are still camping out in Crawford. They would reportedly be considered a "national security threat," since Rice and Rumsfeld plan to visit the ranch on Friday. However, perhaps due to the fact that the story has garnered national attention, she has not been arrested. (Sheehan's report from Thursday) Instead, she has said that if Bush does not meet with her this week, she will camp outside of the White House when he returns from vavation. A crowd of thousands is expected to join Cindy Sheehan in Crawford this weekend. 8/12 Interview on Democracy Now

Cindy Sheehan's blog on the Daily Kos | Flashpoints Radio Coverage: August 10th | August 9th | Free Speech Radio News: August 10th | MFSO Invitation to Crawford | US Indymedia Coverage of Cindy Sheehan | Crawford Peace House is fundraising to support Cindy Sheehan | Another site with updates | More supporters: Counterpunch article | Gold Star Families for Peace | Military Families Speak Out | Veterans for Peace | Code Pink