The first <\/p>\n
casualty of this effort to make the Capitol safe for the president to expound about totalitarianism elsewhere was Cindy Sheehan, the <\/p>\n
California mother of a soldier who was killed in Iraq as part of what Bush would describe as “the call of history to deliver the <\/p>\n
oppressed.” Sheehan had the temerity to peel off her coat to reveal a T-shirt that said, “2,245 Dead. How many more?”<\/p>\n
Sheehan was <\/p>\n
hauled away in handcuffs and charged with unlawful conduct, a misdemeanor. Soon after, sharp-eyed police spotted Beverly Young, wife of a <\/p>\n
Florida congressman — sitting near first lady Laura Bush with a T-shirt that said, “Support the Troops — Defending Our Freedom.”<\/p>\n
Young was quickly ejected from the gallery. Despite an angry exchange with police — she called an officer “an idiot” for classifying <\/p>\n
her T-shirt as “a protest” — she was not arrested. With the gallery cleared of “trouble,” Bush delivered his speech, with a tiny flag <\/p>\n
pin on his lapel and the usual giant American flag backdrop.<\/p>\n
“Every step toward freedom in the world makes our country <\/p>\n safer — so we will act boldly in freedom’s cause,” said Bush, to robust applause.<\/strong><\/p>\n Police Apologize to Sheehan, Drop Charge<\/a> <\/p>\n By LAURIE KELLMAN, The Associated Press<\/p>\n Capitol Police dropped a charge of unlawful conduct against anti-war activist Cindy <\/p>\n Sheehan on Wednesday and apologized for ejecting her and a congressman’s wife from President Bush’s State of the Union address for <\/p>\n wearing T-shirts with war messages.<\/p>\n Cindy Sheehan Released After Arrest for Wearing Shirt<\/a> By David Swanson<\/p>\n HERE IS CINDY’S OWN REPORT:<\/p>\n As most of you have probably heard, I was arrested before the State of the Union Address tonight.<\/p>\n I am speechless with fury at what happened and with grief over what we have lost in our country.<\/p>\n There have been lies from <\/p>\n the police and distortions by the press. (Shocker) So this is what really happened: …<\/p>\n I was never told that I couldn’t wear <\/p>\n that shirt into the Congress. I was never asked to take it off or zip my jacket back up. If I had been asked to do any of those <\/p>\n things…I would have, and written about the suppression of my freedom of speech later. I was immediately, and roughly (I have the <\/p>\n bruises and muscle spasms to prove it) hauled off and arrested for “unlawful conduct.” …<\/p>\n I wore the shirt to make a statement. <\/p>\n The press knew I was going to be there and I thought every once in awhile they would show me and I would have the shirt on. I did not <\/p>\n wear it to be disruptive, or I would have unzipped my jacket during George’s speech. If I had any idea what happens to people who wear <\/p>\n shirts that make the neocons uncomfortable that I would be arrested…maybe I would have, but I didn’t.<\/p>\n [via guerillawomentn.blogspot.com<\/a> via Coco<\/a>]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [updated 2\/4\/06] The great T-shirt threat The first casualty of this effort to make the Capitol safe for the president to expound about totalitarianism elsewhere was Cindy Sheehan, the California mother of a soldier who was killed in Iraq as part of what Bush would describe as “the call of history to deliver the oppressed.” … Continue reading a <\/p>\n T-shirt that said, “2,245 Dead. How many more?”<\/span>