2000th Death Commemorated in Chicago

250 people filled federal plaza with 2,000 placards each containing an image of a pair of combat boots with the name, rank, age and home state of a fallen U.S. military person. A sister of one of the 44 women who have been killed in the war spoke while holding a portrait of her sister. Two other mothers spoke. One has a son in Iraq and the other’s son has two purple hearts and one bronze star for bravery and will be returning shortly to Iraq. They both spoke eloquently about bringing the troops home now. The president of the Council of Islamic Organizations also spoke holding up all of our humanity. People commented afterward that it was a spiritually renewing experience even though it was commemorating a tragic milestone.