MEDIA ADVISORY FOR: Contact: Michael McConnell: 773-425-0834 (cell)
Tuesday, May 3, 2005

430 Pairs of Combat Boots to Honor Fallen Hispanic & African-American Soldiers of Iraq War

Military Families to Speak at Cinco de Mayo Event

3,000 Red Poppies to Represent Wounded

Chicago, IL -- The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) will honor fallen Hispanic and African-American U.S. military personnel in a memorial exhibition showing the human cost of the Iraq War, which will be on display at Douglas Park (corner of Sacramento and 19th) for Cinco de Mayo on Thursday, May 5, 2005.

The new exhibit, which will focus on the cost of war in minority communities, will support community efforts to counter the presence of military recruiters in schools. "Military recruitment in recent years has focused disproportionately on minority youth from low-income communities offering misleading promises of college and other financial or educational opportunities," said Darlene Gramigna, AFSC Program Director.

At the event, Paul Vogel, whose son served in Iraq, will announce a new Ploughshares scholarship fund, particularly designed for low-income youth seeking alternatives to military enlistment.

The Cinco de Mayo will include 430 boots to honor Hispanic, African-American, Asian, Native American and Pacific Islander casualties in Iraq. Also part of the event will be a display of over 3,000 poppies to honor the wounded and a 32-foot wall of
names of Iraqis who have been killed in the war.

WHO: American Friends Service Committee, Military Families & Students

WHAT: Cinco de Mayo Memorial Honoring 430 Hispanic and African American U.S. Military Personnel Killed in the Iraq War

WHERE: Douglas Park, 19th Street & Sacramento Avenue

WHEN: Thursday, May 5, 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Press conference at 12:00 NOON


# # #

The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.