A group of veterans from the US armed forces burnt their uniforms in a show of solidarity with the airman Aaron Bushnell, who died after setting himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington in a protest over the war in Gaza.Footage by Alissa Azar shows veterans lining up and taking turns to burn their military jackets at a vigil in Portland on February 28.A banner can be seen behind them, reading: “Veterans say: Free Palestine! Remember Aaron Bushnell.”The event was organized by the group About Face: Veterans Against the War, which told attendees to gather in front of the Wyatt Federal Building in Portland at 5 pm.Before setting himself on fire, Bushnell filmed himself saying he would “no longer be complicit in genocide". He then yelled “Free Palestine” several times as flames engulfed him. Credit: Alissa Azar via Storyful
This is pretty much my story as well, except I started questioning my views while I was still in. I had a blue collar job and worked with a lot of poc, and one day I was listening to someone I respected bitch about racism in the ranks, and I realized, holy shit, he’s right. I started questioning everything and realized I believed some fucked up shit.
Years of change passed. I like to think I’m much better than I was, but there’s decades of shit to unlearn.