Introduction for Cindy Sheehan Good afternoon, it is my honor and privilege to be introducing Cindy Sheehan today. I am happy to announce her candidacy for Governor of California in the 2014 election, as the representative of the Peace and Freedom party. But first, let me tell you the some achievements, and why you should support Mrs. Sheehan. Cindy is a women who is devoted to the common good of every American family, which is a rare trait to possess in this era. Her story shows us the power of a mother’s love, and how she turned her personal loss of a loved one, into a strong movement to help others’ lives for the better. Cindy is a women who has gone through harsh times, and through her devastation learned that there can still be a light at the end of the tunnel, full of triumph. Cindy Sheehan was born in Inglewood, California in 1957. She had a normal childhood, growing up going to public schools, then furthering her education at UCLA majoring in California history and graduating with honors from Cerritos College. She went on to marry her husband, Patrick Sheehan. Together they had four children, including Casey. Casey enlisted in the United States army feeling it was his American duty after 9-11. On April 4, 2004 Casey was killed by enemy action serving in the Iraq war, while putting in place water pipes, only five days after his arrival. This lost life of a loved one fueled Cindy’s inner activist and gave her the something to fight against. Cindy Sheehan is a very outspoken and unconventional individual, she will say and do what she believes is right, which I find refreshing in the world of politics. In 2005 Cindy was a guest speaker at San Francisco State University where she said, ““I was raised in a country by a public school system that taught us that America was good, that America was just. [But] America has been killing people ... since we first stepped on this continent, we have been responsible for death and destruction. I passed on that bullshit [about America’s goodness] to my son and my son enlisted [in the Army]. [Now] I’m going all over the country telling moms: ‘This country is not worth dying for.’ … [W]e were not attacked by Iraq. We might not even have been attacked by Osama bin Laden if 9/11 was their [the Bush administration’s] Pearl Harbor to get their neo-con agenda through and, if I would have known that before my son was killed, I would have taken him to Canada. I would never have let him go and try and defend this morally repugnant system we have.” Cindy attracted national and international media attention in August 2005 for her extended antiwar protest at a makeshift outside President George W. Bush's Texas ranch—a stand that drew both passionate support and angry criticism. She made Camp Casey on August 6, 2005, in a ditch by the side of the road about three miles from President Bush's Ranch near Crawford, Texas, and announced her intention to stay until she was granted a face-to-face meeting with the president. On some days as many as 1,500 supporters visited Camp Casey, including members of the U.S. Congress, as well as several notable actors, singers, and civil rights activists. Sheehan showed Americans to use their rights presented in the First Amendment, stand for what you believe in, and don’t back down. She later went on to make a commercial directed to the president where she stated, “On April 4, 2004 my son Casey was killed in Iraq. Casey was so good, and so honest. Why can’t you be honest with us? You were wrong about the weapons of mass destruction, you were wrong about the link between Iraq and Al-Qaida. You lied to us, and because of you lies, my son died. You said he died for a noble cause, what cause? Mr. President I want to tell you face to face how much this hurts. I love my county, but how many more of our loved ones need to die in this senseless war? How many more soldiers need to die before we say enough? I know you can’t bring Casey back, but it’s time to
