CHICAGO - As Sunday's 11th anniversary of the Afghanistan war approaches, more people in Illinois and around the nation are questioning whether it's really worth the cost. According to the latest polls, 60 percent of Americans want to bring the troops home as soon as possible.

Michael McConnell, Great Lakes regional program director for the American Friends Service Committee, wants the war to end. He points to a study from the Political Economic Research Institute that found military spending creates far fewer jobs than investments in education and other programs.

"The money we're spending on bombs and tanks and the military is money that we're not spending on infrastructure in the United States, or alternative energy."

McConnell says the war in Afghanistan has cost more than $500 billion, and the lives of more than 2000 American troops as well as thousands of Afghan civilian lives.

Alejandro Villatoro, a Chicago veteran, was sent to Afghanistan as part of the President's "surge" of additional troops. He says he was told they were there to win the hearts and minds of the people, but feels it didn't work out that way. He's particularly concerned about the attacks by allies that Americans are supposed to be training, and the accidental killings of civilians.

"We're causing more damage than doing good. It's just a huge loss on both sides. So, it is time to withdraw and really start taking care of our troops."

Villatoro says he lost a friend in Iraq and has many others who were injured in the conflict in Afghanistan. He says he considers himself patriotic, but is opposed to the war in Afghanistan.

McConnell says those who want to control the U.S. budget deficit need to consider the reason for a huge portion of the deficit.

"Both the Iraq war and the Afghanistan war have been credit-card wars. Every year Congress swipes its credit card, and the U.S. taxpayer is billions of dollars in debt."

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the two wars together have cost nearly $1.5 trillion, $127 billion this year alone.

President Obama is promising to end the war in 2014. Some want to end it earlier, including some former strong supporters of the war from both political parties. Others argue that leaving now would empower the Taliban.

McConnell says he's convinced that drone strikes and civilian casualties will never win Afghan hearts and minds.

The AFSC uses a traveling exhibit called "Windows and Mirrors" to demonstrate the human cost of war, through artwork from American professionals and Afghan children.

The "Windows and Mirrors" schedule is at www.afsc.org




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Groups supporting peace around the globe say the budget approved by Congress is lacking crucial components.

After a monthslong stalemate, Congress has approved the fiscal year 2024 budget.

Megan Rodgers, U.S. policy and advocacy manager for the group Nonviolent Peaceforce, said there are cuts across the board affecting humanitarian aid and civilian support. She pointed out the bill also does not include language recognizing unarmed civilian protection, a methodology to peacefully protect civilians in violent conflicts.

"Any violent conflict that's making headlines today, there are UCP groups that are working and very effective, have access that other traditional aid groups don't, are equipping and protecting civilians that often go overlooked and disproportionately feel the effects of this violent conflict," Rodgers explained.

Rodgers pointed out unarmed civilian protection is used around the world and the U.S. government provides funds for groups employing it.

Rodgers noted budget negotiations for next year are already happening.

"That language was not included for the first time in about five years in the fiscal year 2024 bill and we are really keen to have that included in fiscal year 2025," Rodgers emphasized.

Rodgers added Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., has a lot of influence on funds, such as for groups using unarmed civilian protection, as the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

"We have appreciated her leadership in the past but are certainly looking for more support specifically for unarmed civilian protection as well as peace building and protection in the upcoming year," Rodgers stressed.

Organizations are asking people to join them in a fast on Thanksgiving in solidarity with people suffering from war conditions in Gaza.

Groups including the Council on American-Islamic Relations Oregon and the Movement for Black Lives are calling for a global fast to highlight the dire humanitarian crisis happening in Gaza.

Je Amaechi, digital organizer for Freedom to Thrive, said Thanksgiving Day was chosen for a reason.

"That was intentional because we know a lot of people are gathering to celebrate, to feast," Amaechi explained. "We also want people to experience a slight aspect of deprivation so they can feel a little bit of what Palestinians experience daily in Gaza."

At least 12,000 people in Gaza have died since Israel began its military action there. Israel began the assault in response to an attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 that killed about 1,200 people.

Amaechi noted the event is inspired by fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Black August, which has a fasting tradition held in solidarity with and in commemoration of Black political prisoners.

"We were both drawing from our own fasting traditions and our cultures and understanding from those traditions that there can be sort of a spiritual framework or spiritual underpinning to the political work we're doing," Amaechi emphasized.

Amaechi added organizations like Freedom to Thrive will continue to work toward peace in Gaza.

"Fasting is not enough and we recognize that there has to be more than that," Amaechi acknowledged. "But we're hoping this can be sort of like a spiritual challenge that can help us reflect on our privileges and just consider the stark contrast with those suffering under occupation in Gaza."

Some Missourians fear an increase in hate crimes in the wake of a six-year-old's murder in Illinois this week - an incident authorities say was motivated by the Israel-Hamas war. The U.S. Department of Justice's current hate crime fact sheet finds religion-based hate crimes in Missouri have more than doubled since 2019.

Captain Corey Carlisle of the Kansas City Police Department said there are no immediate safety concerns for Kansas City metro area residents.

"We closely monitor any threats or potential threats that could be targeting members of our community. If we receive any information that there is a potential for violence towards a certain person, place or thing, KCPD will implement extra patrol and security measures to ensure the safety of all of our community members," Carlisle said.

On Thursday, the Council on American Islamic Relations or CAIR cancelled its 29th annual banquet. The hotel scheduled to host the event this weekend - in Arlington, Virginia - has received multiple threats targeting the hotel, its staff, CAIR and American Muslims.

The most recent DOJ statement involves hate crime threats made this week in North Carolina toward Muslims. And the FBI has just released detailed 2022 data on over 11 million criminal offenses nationwide, including religion-based hate crimes.

Yasir Ali, CAIR Missouri Chapter Board Chair, said it is being proactive and planning talks about guidance with authorities around the state.

"There is the fear, especially what happened in Chicago, with a six-year-old that was stabbed 26 times," Ali said. "The community is in fear. It's nothing based on evidence at this point - like, within Missouri - but overall, there is this fear of an increase of Islamophobia."

In August, a Missouri man was sentenced to prison and damages for hate crime and arson violations, after pleading guilty to burning down the Cape Girardeau Islamic Center in 2020.


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