Okinawa protest in Washington

I attended a protest outside the Japanese Embassy Sunday (4/25) against the military bases in Okinawa. A focus and theme of it was the military’s impact on Dugongs, which are described by the Center for Biological Diversity as distant relatives of the manatee, which can live for 70 years and grow to nearly 1,000 pounds.

Everybody attending was given a Dugong mask to wear. I'll call it a semi-mask, because it was worn over the forehead and attached with two elastic bands around the ears. Very clever and creative. At one point we all bowed forward, which made the mask prominent. We were given yellow ribbons to wear as well, and concluded the protest by each placing stickers, many with images of the Dugong, on a poster. I was impressed by the effective use of symbolism and metaphor at this protest; it gave it emotional depth.

There weren’t many people at it but it was very well organized and earnest, and a number of reporters from, I suspect, Japanese news outlets, were there as well. I chatted with some nice people. I didn’t get a sense in my conservations that the environmental issues posed by the buildup on Guam were well known, but there was clear interest from the people I spoke with. But, conversely, I knew almost nothing about Dugong and why the military activities on Okinawa are a threat to this species.

It was a simple, mostly symbolic, protest. There were no long speeches or complex assessments of the situation. It included a reading of some excerpts from a statement by U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich who wrote:

Last week, I sent a letter to the Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, expressing my concern over the plan to move the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station in Futenma, Okinawa, Japan to Nago. As the Marine Corps prepares to move their operations to Nago, completely absent from the discussion is the perspective of the local residents.

(My immediate thought: Is Kucinich aware of what's in store for Guam? Has he written about Guam as well?)

The Dugong, an endangered species, also served as a metaphor for the broader issue.

“We are all manatees because we are all in danger,” said John Feffer, who is on the staff of the Institute for Policy Studies, which appeared to organize the protest. This organization runs this website: Close The Base.

Afterward, I approach Feffer and told him that I hope his group gives attention to Guam as well because of the buildup's environmental impacts. (From an environmental perspective, I don't see how it is possible to separate discussion of the impact of the military on Okinawa from Guam, which is as much as a relocation of the environmental problem as anything else.) Feffer told me the IPF has written about the Guam buildup it and I got the impression that he is earnestly concerned about it. Here’s a piece on the IFI Web site: From Okinawa to Guam, citizens are making the best-laid Pentagon plans go awry.

Photo: (I wish I had a better photo. That’s John Feffer who is speaking. Second photo shows a close-up of the Dugong mask that I wore. And the third is a badly composed photo of a banner.)