She Said NO!

Terri Johnson of Greensboro was like a lot of other young people with limited options after high school who are set upon by US Army recruiters. She believed the promises of the recruiters who told her that the Army was nothing more than a good shot at a college education and a prosperous future. She discovered, as do many others who sign up, that not only was she signing her life away, but the lives of the people targeted by the illegal and immoral war on Iraq as well. So she did the right thing. She refused to fight.

"Terri didn't want to kill people who had done nothing to her," said Gladys Shipman, Terri's grandmother. Terri struggled hard to make the decision to go against the grain, and bravely chose to refuse to finish basic training. She went Absent Without Leave (AWOL), and was given an "other than honorable discharge".

Terri is one of a growing number of people who have refused to be a part of a program that has caused so much suffering for people in Iraq, and has destroyed the lives of thousands of US troops. For her bravery, "The World Can't Wait – Drive Out the Bush Regime" will honor her with a People's Award at our April 21st rally to Stop the Wars, Impeach Bush and Cheney, and Support Military Resisters!