A 5-fist Salute to War Resisters Monument

A group in Nelson, BC, Canada, is planning to erect a monument to honor those Canadians who helped Vietnam War resisters who fled to Canada. To quote from the ourwayhomereunion.com website:
"From 1965-1973 more than 50,000 draft-age Americans made their way to Canada, refusing to participate in the Vietnam War, an immoral war. At the time, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau said: 'Those who make the conscientious judgment that they must not participate in this war... have my complete sympathy, and indeed our political approach has been to give them access to Canada. Canada should be a refuge from militarism.'"

With the growing opposition to the war in Iraq, many in the military are looking for ways to resist, in fact some have already gone to Canada. While the future of Canada as a refuge from militarism is uncertain (see related article on page 6) we feel that the monument is very appropriate in the trying times. We salute those in Nelson for taking a righteous stand and hope their actions will help keep Canada open as an option for those resisting this U.S. war of terror.