AMY GOODMAN: Our guest for this hour is Adrienne Kinne, former Army sergeant who worked in military intelligence. She served for ten years, from 1994 to 2004. She is speaking to us from Vermont.

Adrienne Kinne, why did you decide to speak out? And welcome back to the satellite.

ADRIENNE KINNE: Hi. Thank you.

AMY GOODMAN: Why did you decide to speak out?

ADRIENNE KINNE: Oh, OK, sorry. Basically, when I left the military, I saw what was going on, but I kind of decided that I wanted to better serve my fellow soldiers in uniform by working at the VA, and so I put a lot of energy into finishing my degree and getting a job through the VA hospital.

And doing activist work for a long time, I thought that being an activist meant trying to advocate for change in Congress and our government, and so I was really very committed to trying to see change in our Congress, shifting the balance of power from the Republicans to the Democrats. That’s basically what I spent a lot of time doing in 2005 and 2006, building up to the election. When the Democrats took control of Congress in 2006, I really thought that something would change, and I was very hopeful that finally the wars would be ended. And it was about that time that I moved to Vermont, and the beginning of 2007, I had moved up to Vermont, I was kind of looking for something new, something changing in our government and our society. And then the escalation was announced, and Congress went along with it. And that’s when I realized that if you want something to change, you have to be a part of demanding that change.

And I ended up going to my first demonstration against the war in Washington, D.C., on January 27, 2007, and I joined Iraq Veterans Against the War that day. And it was a very life-changing moment for me. And I know I just became a part of something, a struggle, with fellow veterans who had all been affected by the war on terror, fellow veterans and soldiers.

And, you know, we come from such a diverse background, so many different life experiences. We have everything ranging from anarchists to Socialists, Libertarians, Republicans, conservatives, liberals, Democrats, Greens—everything from one spectrum to another. And yet, we’re all committed to achieving IVAW’s three points of unity, which are immediate withdrawal from Iraq, reparations for the Iraqi people and full veterans’ benefits.

And to see so many people coming together in an organization that is just continuing to grow through such amazing grassroots organizing, it’s just something that really makes you feel like you can be a part of something better and be a part of the change that you want to see. And so, I’m very thankful that I found Iraq Veterans Against the War and that they made a space for me to be a part of their organization, considering that I did not serve on the ground in Iraq, but I definitely, through my service, supported the war in Iraq, and I am as committed as every other member of IVAW to seeing that this occupation ends.

AMY GOODMAN: Are you concerned, Adrienne Kinne, about speaking out now, having a top security clearance, being in military intelligence to now?

ADRIENNE KINNE: Most definitely. When I first joined IVAW, I really wouldn’t tell anybody what I did in the military. I basically told them that I listened to phone conversations in Iraq, and that was about the extent of it.

It was last year, the summer of last year, I was attending the US Social Forum, and it was just being part of that atmosphere where there are so many organizations and people committed to trying to make a difference and speaking out against torture, speaking out against spying, that I realized that I kind of knew something, and I had experienced something that not everybody else had, and that by sharing my experiences, if I could in any way encourage people that they are doing the right thing in speaking out against what our government is doing today, that I needed to do it.

And I certainly have gone through many phases of being very concerned and worried about what the reaction of our government might be. But I feel very strongly that if our government had upheld the Constitution, instead of violating it, that I never would have been put in this situation, and that by breaking that oath to the American people and by violating the Constitution, our government has created this situation, and not me.

AMY GOODMAN: Finally, as we go back to the beginning of this broadcast, saying you saw the target list, that the Palestine Hotel was on it, hearing the documentary that we played that came from Telecinco, Hotel Palestine: Killing the Witness, your thoughts about the deaths on April 8, 2003, of the Reuters cameraman Taras Protsyuk and Jose Couso of Telecinco?

ADRIENNE KINNE: It’s just so frustrating, I think, in many ways, not knowing whether or not we could have prevented it; never knowing what really was going on on the ground, whether or not people were told that the Palestine Hotel was a potential target, and that’s why it was eventually attacked; not knowing whether or not—who made the decision where. I mean, I was a very low rung on the whole totem pole of the military intelligence, and I can speak to my experiences and what I saw and what I witnessed, but not knowing, I think, what is going on in the higher levels, and I think that’s part of the reason why I did decide to speak out, because I really hope very strongly that other people who know a lot more than what I know will choose to do the same thing for the right reasons. And if by speaking out you can encourage other people to kind of follow suit, I think that’s part of what’s all about, as well.

AMY GOODMAN: Adrienne Kinne, I want to thank you very much for being with us. Is this the first time that you have described the seeing of this target list and what you saw about the Hotel Palestine in a national broadcast?

ADRIENNE KINNE: Thank you.

AMY GOODMAN: Thank you. Adrienne Kinne, former Army sergeant, worked in military intelligence.

Source: http://www.democracynow.org/

Recommend this article...

Did you enjoy this article? Please bookmark it onto:

Comments (2)

Write Comment

Please keep the topic of messages relevant to the subject of the article. Personal verbal attacks will be deleted. Please don't use comments to plug your web site. Such material will be removed. Just ensure to *Refresh* your browser for a new security code to be displayed prior to clicking on the 'Send' button. Keep in mind that the above process only applies if you simply entered the wrong security code.
Name:
E-mail
Homepage
Title:
BBCode:
Comment:
Code:*
	I wish to be contacted by email regarding additional comments

Powered by AkoComment Tweaked Special Edition v.1.4.4