Kucinich in L.A., Receives Peace Award

Kucinich in L.A., Receives Peace Award

LOS ANGELES, February 24, 2007 - Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, Saturday received the first-ever Champion for Peace Award in Hollywood from a group of families of military members opposed to U.S. involvement in the Iraq War.


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"The military families are so deserving of support, I think of what it must be like to have a son or daughter in Iraq, knowing they're in harm's way, know that there is not a military victory to be won, and to me it's an obligation to support them and an honor to support them," Kucinich, a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, said after the ceremony at Hollywood and Vine.
"America must leave Iraq, and since we will eventually leave there, we must leave there now," he said.

Military Families Speak Out honored Kucinich for being "a strong advocate for bringing the troops home now and never wavering from that position despite the politics going on," said Pat Alviso, leader of the organization's Long Beach and South Bay Chapter, whose son is currently serving in Fallujah.

Alviso hopes the award -- which was presented during a brief news conference to discuss plans for tomorrow's "Bring Our Troops Home Now" rally at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street -- "will inspire other congressional representatives to follow his lead, cut the (war) funding and bring the troops home now," she said.

About 30 people attended today's event, including members of Iraq Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace.

"It's an absolutely critical moment in United States' history, and these very humble people are salt of the earth ... we ought to be listening to these people and I was there to listen," Kucinich said. "If we really love our troops as the military families do, we should bring them home," he said.

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