The late peace activist Jerry Berrigan, or, rather, 30 life-sized images of him, joined a dozen people at drone base in upstate New York on Thursday to protest the “instruments of terror” and urge the military personnel there not to commit crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Berrigan, who died in 2015 at the age of 95, had, in his late years, frequently taken part in the regular protests at the Hancock Air National Guard Base near Syracuse, the Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones says.
And because Berrigan had said that he “would have resisted more often and been arrested more often” in his life—which, like that of his brothers Dan and Phil, was filled with decades of peace work—the drone protesters say this is where he would have wanted to be.
The activists say they attempted to deliver a letter to personnel at the base, urging them to uphold the United Nations charter which states that “all nations shall refrain from the use of force against another nation.”
“The Attack Wing of the NY Air National Guard deploys hunter/killer Reaper drones 24/7 over Afghanistan and probably elsewhere,” their letter states. “These weaponized robotic drones are instruments of terror. They perpetrate extrajudicial killings, violate due process, violate national sovereignty, and kill noncombatants and civilians.”
The letter also urged the personnel to heed their conscience and “not be complicit in these crimes against peace, crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
After an hour an a half blockading the entrance to the base, a statement from the group says the 12 activists were arrested and charged with one misdemeanor and two violations. Two of them were also charged with an additional misdemeanor for allegedly violating an order of protection taken out by the base commander.
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