Just outside the gates of Ft. Lewis Washington is Coffee Strong, a G.I. coffeehouse and internet cafe owned and operated by G.I. Voice, an organization of recent vets and civilian supporters. In addition to coffee, computers and free WiFi, there are concerts, events, and movie nights. They also have resources for service members, their families, and veterans facing service-related issues such as deployment, PTSD, sexual assault, and command grievances. Coffee Strong serves as a safe space for service members, military families and military veterans to discuss issues like war, deployment, PTSD, and the hardships of life in the military.
They need your help. Coffee Strong is similar to the Different Drummer Cafe outside of Ft. Drum NY. The G.I. Coffeehouse played an important role in ending the Vietnam War. If you have seen Sir! No Sir! then you have an idea of how these places helped the movement. If you haven't, find it and watch it.
Back to the reason for this diary. I just received this letter from the folks that run Coffee Strong:
Support our soldiers...for real this time
In your hands you hold the opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of soldiers and their families. Coffee Strong needs you to continue our outreach to soldiers at Fort Lewis, the largest Army base on the West Coast. Coffee Strong is a G.I. coffeehouse run by the veteran-led organization G.I. Voice.
Since opening its doors on Election Day 2008, Coffee Strong has served as a much needed safe place for soldiers weary of repeated deployments and exploitation by the Army. Coffee Strong, inspired by the Vietnam-era GI coffeehouse movement, is just outside the gates of Fort Lewis in Lakewood, Washington. Coffee Strong offers:
• GI rights counseling;
• Free coffee to enlisted soldiers;
• Free concerts and movies to enlisted soldiers;
• A public meeting space for groups such as Iraq Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace.
Your support will allow us to continue offering these essential services.
To expand our operations and continue to provide a safe haven for soldiers Coffee Strong needs to enlist 530 sustaining contributors. Your contributions will be used to:
• Support G.I. Voice’s national campaign against Stop-Loss (the military policy that involuntarily extends enlistments and repeats deployments to war zones);
• Pay living-wage salaries for two Iraq War veterans running Coffee Strong;
• Support the expansion of our services to soldiers’ families in anticipation of upcoming massive
deployments of 10,000 soldiers from Fort Lewis.
Why support Coffee Strong?
G.I. Voice is a unique organization dedicated to the unmet needs of soldiers and their families. Historically anti-war organizations have neglected to address the isolation and conflicting pressures that soldiers face (especially those contemplating war resistance). Anti-war veterans have been underrepresented both by mainstream veterans’ groups that support wars, and some peace groups that do not understand soldiers’ experiences and grievances—Coffee Strong seeks to bridge this gap. Coffee Strong is a place where soldiers can find resources and information unfiltered by the military command, on issues such as:
• Stop-Loss and other involuntary extensions of service;
• Post-deployment trauma;
• Navigating Veterans’ Administration bureaucracy;
• Military sexual assault and mistreatment of women soldiers;
• Options for G.I. dissent and resistance to war.
Do we take our soldiers for granted?
In this world of sound-bite journalism and 24/7 news channels the physical, emotional and psychological toll that war takes on soldiers and their families gets far too little attention. Political candidate use soldiers as props, and too often we limit our support of them to token gestures such as yellow ribbons and flag pins.
The wars and accompanying repeated deployments that the U.S. is currently involved in are taxing on service members and their families. Our soldiers surrender their time, energy, and tragically their lives to be chess pieces in a geopolitical game, over which they have little to no control. Soldiers deploying and returning from conflict are under-supported by the Army and the community. They need your help.
Please donate and encourage your friends and family to make a tax-deductible contribution today by visiting our website at http://www.CoffeeStrong.com and clicking on "Donate." Please consider a small monthly donation, and know you are making a huge difference in soldiers’ lives. For us to continue our work we need the ongoing support of community members like you. Coffee Strong doesn’t exist without your support. Watch the website for the new Times Ten donation packets soon to be available to help you encourage friends or family members to give.
So anyway, this is just a small effort to get some attention pointed at Coffee Strong and let you know the important work they are doing and an opportunity for you to give them a hand.
Some helpful links:
Coffee Strong
Open Monday - Friday, 7am to 7pm Saturday and Sunday 9am to 7 pm(open later for special events)
Location: 15109 Union Ave SW #2, Lakewood WA 98498
Phone: (253) 581-1565
Different Drummer Cafe
Our cafe is designed to provide active duty and reserve military personnel and families at Ft. Drum with an inviting, comfortable, and warm place to socialize, listen to music and enjoy other live entertainment. Soldiers will also have access to legal counseling, a bookstore, and a regular program of film showings and discussions on current issues.
IVAW
Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) was founded by Iraq war veterans in July 2004 at the annual convention of Veterans for Peace (VFP) in Boston to give a voice to the large number of active duty service people and veterans who are against this war, but are under various pressures to remain silent.
From its inception, IVAW has called for:
* Immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces in Iraq;
* Reparations for the human and structural damages Iraq has suffered, and stopping the corporate pillaging of Iraq so that their people can control their own lives and future; and
* Full benefits, adequate healthcare (including mental health), and other supports for returning servicemen and women.
Under the Hood Cafe
In the spirit of the Oleo Strut, Under The Hood is a place for soldiers to meet and unwind.
The Under the Hood Cafe 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)
Sir! No Sir!
Tells the long suppressed story of the GI movement to end the war in Vietnam. This is the story of one of the most vibrant and widespread upheavals of the 1960’s- one that had a profound impact on American society yet has been virtually obliterated from the collective memory of that time.
And I would be remiss if I didn't include a link to my organization, Veterans For Peace.