by Catherine Crabill
This past weekend it was a distinct honor to have participated in the liberation of our war memorials inWashington, D.C. Keep in mind the pretext of closing these sites was because of “budget constraints.” They could not afford to leave open that which has always been left open, but they could afford a massive police presence working overtime. They could afford thousands of rented barricades and printing of thousands of signs. They could afford untold millions for Obama vacations, ‘Obama phones,’ expanded welfare and disability rolls. The list goes on and on, but no money for our military families and in particular, the very sites dedicated to them and because of them.
Having arrived on Saturday, the day before the planned reclamation of these sacred sites, I drove into the city and happily noticed hundreds of people ignoring the barricades spitefully placed around open air memorials that historically have been accessible to the public day and night.
I felt a tangible presence of righteous defiance against this tyrannical régime bent on inflicting maximum pain against our most treasured citizens, our military veterans. It boggles the mind to imagine that these same men and women, along with their families, have been willing to pay and have paid, with their toil and blood, the full measure of devotion and have been maliciously used as pawns in the hands of a petty, petulant, vindictive tyrant.
All memorials were accessible, via civil disobedience, except the Lincoln Memorial. There stood the loathsome barricades reinforced with armed park police, mounted and on foot, to insure that “We the People” could not access this site. I personally witnessed three WW II veterans, in wheelchairs, turned away. I stated to their assistants that I would personally move and face arrest those damned barricades if those men wanted in. They politely declined my offer, stating that they did not have the desire to put someone in that position. I left determined to return with reinforcements scheduled to arrive the next day.
On Sunday, I arrived with my sisters at the WW II Memorial where the veterans had already dismantled the hated barricades there, in addition to every other open air war memorial. Yet, barricades defiantly stood at the Lincoln Memorial. I found it odd that Obama had amassed his resistance at the Lincoln Memorial until someone pointed out that Lincoln’s legacy is the one on which Obama hangs his hat. That legacy being trampling the Constitution, including states rights, privacy, fomenting Martial Law, and inciting Civil War. (I do appreciate that one of few benefits of his administration was ending slavery, but that was not his initial goal.)
I also noted that the Lincoln Memorial stands at the “gates” of the city. The Bible states that whosoever controls the gates of the city controls the city. That spiritual significance was not lost on me, or Obama, apparently.
Thankfully, forces of unarmed veterans and other peaceful protesters mustered there, dismantling the barricades and taking the high ground, clearing the way for thousands to enjoy what is rightfully theirs. The Park Police did not “stand down” until an overwhelming presence of men of valor caused them to scatter like cockroaches. These same police disgracefully withstood women, children and aged and infirmed WW II vets the day before in sufficient numbers to threaten and intimidate.
Upon my arrival at the Lincoln Memorial, I was surprised to see my sister dragging a barricade away from the site. I couldn’t understand why she was going to such lengths until I saw officers from the U.S. Park Police trying to reestablish the barricades that others had parted. As they did, I observed a police officer shoving a barricade across the access, when he physically pushed a veteran out of his way. In a moment of rage, I approached the police officer, shouting “how dare you, how dare you block our veterans! How DARE YOU!” At this point he and two other officers turned around and walked away, making no apologies for their actions. It was then that I grabbed the barricade and pulled it back, again permitting access to the memorial. Then men in the crowd came over and dismantled them and carried them away. I was in tears and overwhelmed at this insanity and exhilarated in the triumph of the moment.
I next proceeded up the steps of the monument, sensing that the opportunity might be fleeting and I could not leave without stepping foot on the “high place” and reclaiming it for Christ. Inside I saw a number of U.S. Park Police officers, sullen in the corner, observing the crowd over which they had lost control. I saw many vets approach them and extend their hand in friendship, only to have their handshake sadly refused.
From the Lincoln Memorial, scores of other men and women carried the abhorrent barricades to the gates of the White House where they were deposited and met with swat teams, armed to the teeth, who shamefully shouted out threats to veterans of all ages, including those who fought in the Second World War.
What I witnessed as a freedom loving, law abiding wife of 28 years and mother of 4, enraged me to the point of being willing to face arrest to resist this lawless, vile administration and his paid minions.
Regardless of party affiliation, it is incumbent upon all of us to vociferously object the attack on our military and “We the People” by this administration. There is NO JUSTIFICATION for the disgraceful treatment of our men and women in uniform, past and present. If this display of repugnant tyranny is allowed to stand unchallenged than woe unto us for unleashing totalitarianism unheard of and unprecedented in American history.
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