A lone vote of conscience

On September 14, 2001, Representative Barbara Lee cast a lone vote against a resolution put before the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill gave President George W. Bush absolute authority to pursue military action in response to the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon three days earlier. She said: "We must be careful not to embark on an open-ended war with neither an exit nor a focused target. We cannot repeat past mistakes. In 1964, Congress gave President Lyndon Johnson the power to ‘take all necessary measures’ to repel attacks and prevent further aggression. In so doing, this House abandoned its own constitutional responsibilities and launched our country into years of undeclared war in Vietnam.

"At that time, Senator Wayne Morse, one of two lonely votes against the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, declared, ‘I believe that history will record that we have made a great mistake in subverting and circumventing the Constitution of the United States. … I believe that within the next century, future generations will look with dismay and great disappointment upon a Congress which is now about to make such a historic mistake.’ Senator Morse was correct, and I fear we make the same mistake today. And I fear the consequences."

Congresswoman Lee, whose district includes Oakland and Berkeley, Calif., received thousands of messages of thanks from people nationwide who sought a peaceful resolution to the drums of war, while she also garnered many hateful notes decrying her solitary stance.

Earl Neil spoke with Barbara Lee on the night before her historic vote in Congress. Neil, an Episcopal priest, served as rector of St. Augustine’s Church in West Oakland in the late 1960s, where he achieved a small measure of fame for his decision to offer sanctuary to a new, fledgling community organization called the Black Panther Party. "Father Earl," as he became known to the Panthers, and Lee have maintained a strong friendship since their collaborative work on civil rights in the1960s and in support of other grassroots social justice issues in the decades that followed.

In an exclusive Witness interview, Lee speaks with Neil about her courageous vote against the war, her definition of "true patriotism," and her faith. As Lee said to the Congress, "This unspeakable attack on the U.S. has forced me to rely on my moral compass, my conscience and my God for direction." The conversation also addresses her concerns regarding the connection between communities of color, decreasing civil liberties and the criminal justice system in a new political era.

This powerful dialogue took place as this issue of The Witness was being put to bed, so to find the full text of this exclusive interview visit our website – www.thewitness.org – TODAY! A portion of the interview will also run in the April 2002 issue of The Witness, which will lift up the voices of women who are confronting violence.

– Ethan Flad