The ‘Jeff Sharlet Memorial Award for Veterans’ is a $1,000 prize, with publication, for writing in any genre on any subject by U.S. military veterans and active duty personnel, hosted by The Iowa Review and judged by Robert Olen Butler, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for his collection of short stories, A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain. The deadline is June 15.
War is Trauma: Print Portfolio Series
On Friday, April 20 at 5604 Manor in Austin, Texas we exhibited “War Is Trauma”, a portfolio of handmade prints produced by the Justseeds Artists' Cooperative in collaboration with the Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). For this project over 30 artists* from Justseeds, IVAW, and their allies have each created a print that addresses “Operation Recovery,” and to focus public attention towards important issues not being publicly discussed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
Watch a video about the event. Produced by Grace Alfar. Directed by Jeff Zavala. A ZGraphix Production. Austin IndyMedia.
Ribs and Rights: Weekly BBQ for Service Members. Join us for free barbecue and information on GI rights every Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m.
Killeen Poetry Slam
Every second and fourth Friday night UTH will be hosting a Open Mic. with
The Killeen Poetry Slam, a nationally award winning slam. It’s a
space for poets... but if you sing, rap, mime... whatever... it’s
your mic.
Fort Hood holds town hall session by Geoff West. (Temple Daily Telegraph, 1/27/12) “For those seeking an open dialogue with military officials about stigmatizing, often shadowy collateral wounds of service – whether it’s post-traumatic stress or sexual abuse – Thursday’s televised question-and-answer with Fort Hood leadership wasn’t so much a victory as a step in the right direction...” View more
Portrait of an American “Hero”: A Soldier’s Story by JoAnn Wypijewski. (CounterPunch, 12/01/11) “I have been struggling, when I go to Under the Hood, with going to Afghanistan and all my thoughts around that. It’s like two lives. I come here and I put on these boots and this uniform, and I’m one person – a very good, loyal soldier – and then the second I take it all off, I follow my Occupy blogs and I ask a lot of questions. There are a lot of contradictions there, which is why I get a lot of nourishment when I go to Under the Hood, because there you can just be. You can think about these things, but no one’s forcing anything on you, no one’s judging you.” View more
Read the April Under the Hood Update. Read older issues in the archive.
Iraq Veterans Against the War aims to help troops with PTSD by Rose Thayer. (Killeen Daily Herald, 1/2/12) “Despite the war in Iraq being over, members of Iraq Veterans Against the War, operating in Killeen at Under the Hood Cafe, said there is still work to be done.” View more
Ex-soldier shares his steps to gain CO status by Amanda Kim Stairrett. (Killeen Daily Herald, 7/30/11) “Spc. Kyle Wesolowski was in Iraq with the 1st Cavalry Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team when he began to develop beliefs he harbored since high school.” View more
Activists build watchtower By Anthony Scott. (Fort Hood Herald, 5/31/11) “ Six veterans with Iraq Veterans Against the War and Under the Hood Soldier Outreach Center and Café marched up to reception desk of III Corps headquarters.” Read more
Veterans attempt to deliver message to General Campbell.
Operation Recovery heads to Fort Hood: IVAW requests meeting with General Campbell.
Read recent news posted on our news page.
Standing Down by Dan Solomon. (The Texas Observer, 2/24/11) “A soldier can follow his conscience and refuse to fight, but his real struggle is just beginning.” View more
After months of waiting, Fort Hood soldier is finally acknowledged as a conscientious objector.
We Are Public Employees Too! (IVAW.org, 2/25/11) “Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) calls on all U.S. military service members to refuse and resist any mobilization against workers organizing to protect their basic rights. IVAW stands in solidarity with the multitude gathered in Madison, Wisconsin and many other cities to defend their unions.” View more
Visit Resi•Store, our new online store, for Under the Hood Café merchandise.
Activists protest war outside post by Amanda Kim Stairrett. (Killeen Daily Herald, 7/8/2010) “In conjunction with the sixth annual Iraq Veterans Against the War convention in Austin, Killeen's Under the Hood Café...”
See three 1970 issues of the Fatigue Press, a GI newspaper from Killeen, sent to Under the Hood by a supporter whose husband was stationed at Fort Hood during the Vietnam War.
Anti-war cafe opens in the shadow of Fort Hood by Jeremy Schwartz. (Austin American-Statesman, 8/15/09) “Off-post, soldiers can let down their guard and open up about the war at Under the Hood cafe.” Read more
Injured Hearts, Injured Minds by Forrest Wilder. (The Texas Observer. 8/7/09) “In March, Army Spc. Michael Kern, 22, returned to Fort Hood after a year and a day in Iraq. Shaken by his experience and disgusted with the war, Kern, a native of Riverside, California, tried to readjust by getting as hammered as possible.” Read more
Watch this! This is Where We Take Our Stand: The IVAW Winter Soldier Project. A new film series by David Zeiger. A new episode will be posted every two weeks throughout the summer.
Under the Hood Café Documentary by Sarah Garrahan and Lauren Sanders
From Ann
The Under the Hood Café offers an oasis for members of the military to gather and talk of issues of importance. I welcome the opportunity to meet fellow military in an atmosphere of peace and justice.
— Ann Wright, U.S. Army colonel (retired), official of the U.S. State Department (retired)
From Victor
I lived a miserable existence since I turned against the war in Iraq in 2007. I have frequented Under the Hood Café since its grand opening in March of 2009. The café has become my refuge from a closed-minded and dehumanizing military culture. I have seen it bring joy to every soldier and civilian that has become a regular here. The civilian staff is dedicated to helping soldiers deal with personal and legal issues. I have attained a sense of purpose that I have never had in my life. I am now committed to the success of both Under the Hood and the anti-war movement. I have spent countless hours discussing and thinking about ways to end these wars. The support I have received from my family at Under the Hood has helped me take the liberating leap from obedient soldier to war resister. I cannot remember the last time I was this happy. Under the Hood has changed my life forever.
— SPC Victor Agosto, Afghanistan War Resister
From Ronn
During Vietnam, the GI antiwar movement got off the ground when civilians started establishing a string of coffeehouses around military installations.
I'm genuinely excited that Under the Hood has finally opened. Your donations are greatly appreciated and will go a long way toward giving us what we need in order to take care of our brothers and sisters as well as organize a viable movement to help end these destructive, pointless wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Thank you very much.
— Ronn Cantu, Former President, Iraq Veterans Against the War Chapter 38 at Fort Hood
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