Zanesville TimesRecorder
April 5-7
Eyes Wide Open Ohio, an exhibit of multimedia journey through the words
and images of the Iraq war, will open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday
and Thursday, April 5-6, at the Muskingum College, Lobby/Atrium of Baker
Science Center, New Concord and then from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, April
7, at The Armory, second floor commons, 814 Elberon St., in conjunction
with First Friday. The exhibit is sponsored by the American Friends
Service Committee. There is no cost to view the exhibt, although donations
will be accepted. For information: (740) 826-7479 or 826-8288.
First Friday
ZANESVILLE -The Celebration of the Arts First Friday event will be from
5 to 8 p.m. today.
The Artist Colony of Zanesville's newest member is Michael Seiler. Seiler's
studio is located on the second floor of the Business Equipment building
at 33011⁄42 Market St.The entrance to his studio is on Market
Street. Another new business participating this month isThe Olde Towne
Antique Mall, 527 Main St.
The Armory Artist Collective will host an exhibit that
is a memorial to Ohio's servicemen and women entitled Eyes Wide Open
- Ohio.This exhibit is sponsored by Muskingum College and the American
Friends Service Committee.
Zanesville artist Gerald Westgerdes will also have a
show at the Armory Artist Collective, 814 Elberon Ave.
Jim Sharrer is a member of the Zanesville Artist Colony
and his gallery cassZbellZ is in the basement of the Masonic Temple.
The gallery will also have Fourth Street Fusion playing from 5 to 8
p.m.
WHIZNews, New Concord, Ohio
Empty Boots For Fallen Soldiers
Thu, Apr 06, 2006. 12:40 PM
By: Jacqueline Preston Mail to Friend Email Story
112 pairs of empty boots, each representing an Ohio service man or woman
killed in the Iraq War.
Students and Professors from Muskingum College displayed
the boots on the lawn of their atrium to stir emotions of those walking
by.
Stephanie Carter, a Junior at Muskingum College, “I
think it is very important to show everyone the impact that the war
has even to honor the fallen soldiers, the Iraq civilians who have lost
a lot of their lives doing this.”
The exhibit started in Akron and it has made it way
to Muskingum County, to make the war evident to the students and the
community and the consequences involved.
There will be another exhibit at the Armory in Zanesville
tomorrow from 5 to 8 P.M. The exhibit is in conjunction with First Friday
and is an especially appropriate setting for an exhibit.
Comments from Letters to the Editor - Mailbag:
Mailbag: There had to have been a better way
Monday, April 17, 2006
Editor:
I finally decided to write to you about Muskingum College’s “Eyes
Wide Open” exhibit.
I am not upset that the college had the display because
our soldiers proudly defend our country’s freedoms to give us,
its citizens, the right to have a passive protest is we choose to do
so.
However, I was angered by this protest for two reasons.
The first reason being the “campus authorities” permitted
this traveling exhibit on campus in the manner in which it was presented.
These authorities have shown disrespect to our soldiers, as well as
their families.
Why couldn’t these campus authorities have had
an exhibit that was done in a more honorable way? Perhaps a display
with a small American flag for every soldier killed in Iraq and let’s
not forget Afghanistan, too. (Oops, I brought up the flag.) This type
of display would have still presented your point to protest the loss
of life in a way but also would have brought more honor to these fallen
soldiers and their families.
This brings me to my second reason of being angered
about this protest. How could the college authorities hide behind their
guidelines and not let the other patriotic/military students display
the American flag in support of our soldiers. These students are also
citizens of our country, are they not? They have just as much of a right
to display the flag in “support” of our soldiers as one
has to have a “passive protest” by displaying boots. If
hanging the flags on campus buildings upset the authorities, why not
let these students have a flag exhibit elsewhere on campus. The campus
authorities should have also “affirmed the right” for these
students to fly our nation’s flag. I am offended by Muskingum
College’s campus authorities not allowing patriotic/military students
to show their support for our troops, by not doing so, one can see that
Muskingum College’s authorities” DO NOT allow the expression
of varied viewpoints.
I was encouraged to see another soldier’s mom,
Denise Lewis, response in Sunday’s Mailbox. I too am a proud mom
of a soldier who has been to Iraq twice and will most likely go again.
If you want an “authorities” viewpoint just ask the military
mother (or wife) about our worries, fears and prayers. We are also very
proud of the service that our loved ones give. There are plenty of people
in our area, reservists and regular military, who proudly serve in Iraq
and Afghanistan. Others also serve 24/7 at home and abroad too. These
soldiers have families here. Military families don’t all live
around military bases.
Here are several more ways (on and off campus) to show
support for our troops. Fly flags and ribbons on your car. Fly a flag
at home. Wear patriotic clothing. Attend a Fourth of July celebration
or a Veteran’s Day parade and wave our nation’s flag. Tell
our service men and women thank-you for the service they give. Pray
for our soldiers and their families. Also, please donate to local troop
support efforts through a gift of a cash donation, time spent packing
boxes to soldiers, or writing a soldier a letter. If you don’t
know where to donate, or write to a soldier, just read The Jeffersonian.
They’ve been very generous about articles on troop support.
All soldiers, in past and present wars, deserve our
thanks and gratitude. Our country wouldn’t be what it is today
without them. These soldiers protect our rights, no matter what opinions
we may have. God bless them.
Lori Vorhies
Pleasant City
Mailbag: No disrespect meant by exhibit
Monday, April 17, 2006
Editor:
As one of the individuals responsible for bringing the
Eyes Wide Open-Ohio exhibit to Muskingum College, I feel I must respond
to the news(?)story and “letter to the editor” that were
the result of one Muskingum College student’s opinion that the
exhibit was somehow disrespectful to our soldiers.
The point of the Eyes Wide Open exhibit was to remind
citizens of the costs of the Iraq War and occupation - costs that are
borne more heavily by some. Many of us tend to forget and can go about
our daily lives without much awareness of the enormous sacrifices others
are making on our behalf. Viewing 112 pairs of empty boots (113 as of
today) representing the Ohio soldiers killed is a chilling reminder
of the costs the war has brought to some of our best and brightest and
their families. It is up to each of us to consider whether this country’s
decision to invade Iraq is worth the costs we continue to assume. We
are all free to answer that question as we choose.
The Eyes Wide Open-Ohio exhibit includes boots that
have been donated by a Marine, a map depicting the wounded from Ohio
that was created by an organization of disabled veterans, and quotations
from soldiers and veterans of this war. A very few families have requested
that their soldier’s name be removed from the exhibit, and their
wishes have been honored. Veterans viewing the exhibit have thanked
us for not allowing the troops to be forgotten. Many of those who viewed
the exhibit locally thanked us for coming.
The national Eyes Wide Open exhibit with the 2,340-plus
pairs of empty boots is currently scheduled to be on display on the
statehouse lawn in Columbus June 12-14. I encourage as many citizens
as possible to view the exhibit then or to view the Ohio exhibit as
it travels the state and make up their own minds.
Marcia Hartman
New Concord
Comment on display on campus
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Editor:
This letter is in response to the “Eyes Wide Open”
display that was allowed to be shown at Muskingum College last week.
When I saw the front page of the newspaper, my eyes
did open really wide and I was appalled. I have the upmost respect for
the 112 Ohio soldiers who lost their lives in the Iraq war and I do
not feel that the traveling boot exhibit is an appropriate way to protest
the war, nor do I feel that it was appropriate to be shown on the quad
at Muskingum College.
My brother is a member of the 101st Airborne, C CO 2-506TH
Infantry, and is proudly serving our country in Iraq. I fully support
his actions because what he is doing is helping to civilize Iraq and
keep Americans safe
I am a 2004 graduate of Muskingum College and I am disappointed
to call myself an alumna of such a biased establishment that would not
allow for our American flag to be flown but would allow students to
“passively” protest the war!
I would hope that in the future Muskingum College would
choose to support our soldiers and make the front page of The Jeffersonian
with something positive.
Maria Kay Rogers
Quaker City‘Eyes Wide Open’ exhibit
allowed on campus
John Lowe
Thursday, April 6, 2006
The Daily Jeffersonian
NEW CONCORD - A display at a college campus here that
offers a passive protest of the war in Iraq has left at least one Muskingum
College student upset.
The traveling “Eyes Wide Open” exhibit,
which features a pair of combat boots for every U.S. soldier killed
in Iraq, raised the ire of Tristan Eagon, who viewed it as unpatriotic.
Eagon told The Jeffersonian on Wednesday that military
students on campus were upset because a previous effort to display U.S.
flags in support of the military was denied by campus authorities.
Apparently, the students had wanted to hang the flags
on a campus building but were told they could not because it might hurt
the feelings of those opposed to the war.
College officials last Thursday morning expressed neither
support nor opposition to the sentiment behind the Eyes Wide Open exhibit.
They did affirm, however, the right for the exhibit to be on campus.
“Muskingum College has guidelines regarding the
use of all campus property,” said Janice McCloud, college spokesperson.
“Each request is carefully considered in relation
to those policies.”
McCloud said the school tries to allow the expression
of varied viewpoints.
“Students and faculty regularly invite many different
kinds of exhibits, speakers, and programs to campus as part of the overall
learning experience,” she said.
