YouthCast

(video from The Nation's recent article on Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan)

Last week marked the 5th anniversary of the war in Iraq. This week the number of US troops killed in Iraq reached 4,000. From March 13-16, members of Iraq Veterans Against the War gathered outside D.C. to make testimonies about their combat experiences. The weekend was called Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan and was modeled off Winter Soldier--an event organized by John Kerry and other members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War in 1971.

I was sitting in the audience that weekend, and each night I stayed up late talking with participants. As I work on an audio documentary about the event, I'm also working to process it all. These soldiers' stories were devastating. I would definitely recommend taking a deep breath and watching two of the more graphic testimonies: Jon Turner and Kristofer Goldsmith.