Friday, March 11, 2011

Another US soldier has died

Iraq War Veteran William David Templeton passed away Monday from the injuries he received while serving in Iraq. Kevin Held (KSDK) reports on the fallen and the link includes KSDK's video report by Frank Riley.

Frank Riley: Gone but not forgotten. The town of Pinkckneyville made sure everyone knew how much one young man is missed. Passing by, you can't miss it [the flags]. It sits on every street corner proudly in this small Illinois town of Pinckneyville. In some cases, a little faded. Other times, as vivid and infectious as this smile [photo of William David Templeton smiling]. So young and full of promise, full of determination and an unyielding will to sacrifice.

PFC Derek Hurt: He was really a great guy. Like he would do anything for anybody. He would give the shirt off his back to anybody if need be.

Frank Riley: Everyone knew it so when then 18-year-old Will Templeton said he'd signed up for the army, all Tyler Hutchings could do was wish him well. He turned down football scholarships because he wanted to serve his country.

Tyler Hutchings: I've known him all my life.

Frank Riley: The best of friends. They played football together, shared goals, frustrations and advice. But their favorite pastime? Knocking back a few cold ones.

Tyler Hutchings: Natural life was our number one. That was it. We drank a lot of beer.

Frank Riley: When Will returned from Iraq on temporary leave, he assured Hutchings everything was okay. Will was a Specialist during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Turns out, everything wasn't okay. Will was injured while in Iraq. Back home, his friends and girlfriend were counting down, awaiting another reunion. Before that could happen, Will was flown back to the States to Fort Carson, Colorado for hospice care. The reunion never happened. 22-year-old Will Templeton died Monday, a little more than a month before he was set to come home. And funeral services will be Tuesday at the First United Presbyterian Church [11:00 a.m.], right here in town. In Pinkckneyville, Frank Riley, News Channel 5.

In other news, Kimberly Helfing (AP) reports on the difficulties veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars are having finding employment outside of the military. Today the government is supposed to release the latest unemployment data on 18 to 24 year old veterans of the two wars. US Senator Patty Murray who Chairs the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee shares that veterans are telling her they are leaving their service off their resumes hoping that will help them land a job.

Patti Zarling (Green Bay Press Gazette) reports on soldiers' families and the stress and issues they face as they adapt to the deployments such as Amanda Goodwin who will have labor induced the day after Christmas while her husband Will we be home on leave so he can be present for the birth (her due date was January 4, 2012).

The following community sites -- ;lus Antiwar.com -- updated last night and this morning:




David Bacon's latest book is Illegal People -- How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (Beacon Press) which won the CLR James Award. He's a journalist and he's an artist. He has an upcoming exhibit.
Beyond Borders:
Immigration Images and Stories
Photographs by David Bacon and Kathya Landeros

Viewpoint Photographic Art Center
2015 J. Street, Suite 101
Sacramento, CA 95811-3124
Phone: 916-441-2341

Exhibit Dates:
Wed, 03/09/2011 - Sat, 04/02/2011
Artist Reception Date:
Fri, 03/11/2011 - 5:30pm - 9:00pm
2nd Saturday Reception:
Sat, 03/12/2011 - 5:30pm - 9:00pm


An exhibition of documentary photographs by David Bacon and Kathya Landeros about immigration to the United States from Mexico and Central America.

An experienced photographer, journalist, and former labor organizer, Bacon's stunning work of photographs and oral history documents the new reality of migrant experience: the creation of transnational communities. He takes us inside these communities and illuminates the ties that bind them together, the influence of their working conditions on their families and health, and their struggle for better lives.

Landeros, herself from a family of immigrants from Central Mexico, proposes that "If one can accept that the history of migratory policy toward Mexico has been complicated as we negotiate between our demands for labor and our need for cultural sovereignty, then we can acknowledge that the migrant communities that have developed in Mexico are a manifestation of these complexities."
For more articles and images, see http://dbacon.igc.org

See also Illegal People -- How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (Beacon Press, 2008)
Recipient: C.L.R. James Award, best book of 2007-2008

See also the photodocumentary on indigenous migration to the US
Communities Without Borders (Cornell University/ILR Press, 2006)

See also The Children of NAFTA, Labor Wars on the U.S./Mexico Border (University of California, 2004)



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