April 15, 2001

Letters to the Editor

The Washington Post

1150 50th Street NW

Washington, DC 20071

Sheridan Circle's Eyesore

Sheridan Circle has been occupied by protesters by more than a month now. Banners obscure the statue, and a cabin has been erected, which, formerly flimsy, has been solidified and now looks like a permanent fixture.

I am firmly in favor of one's right to protest any cause. However, the demonstrations have had more than enough time to make their point and should now move one. I cannot believe that they have park service permission to occupy the circle, and this surely sets precedent for other groups to do likewise at other strategic Washington locations.

J. R. Ibbotson

Alexandria, VA

April 17, 2001

Letters to the Editor

The Washington Post

1150 50th Street NW

Washington, DC 20071

Dear Editor,

J. R. Ibbotson of Alexandaria has had enough of "the protesters" at Sheridan Circle [letters, April 15], calling our demonstration an "eyesore" and urging us to "move on".  The letter writer expressed displeasure with the park police for licensing us to exercise our first amendment rights. Our "banners obscure the statue," It was stated.

I am one of the organizers of the vigil at Sheridan Circle across from the Turkish Ambassador's residence.  We are demonstrating to effect the freedom of four Kurdish parliamentarians imprisoned in Turkish jails since 1994.

General Sheridan remains atop his horse on an elevated hill and can be seen from all sides. What's hidden is the slow motion genocide of Kurds in the hands of their neighbors; it gets little attention in the media.

Tyranny, not democracy, is what the Kurds endure in their ancestral land Kurdistan. Here in the land of the free, exposing the tyrants is our constitutional right and ought to be supported.

Kani Xulam

Washington, DC

Ps I: [Editor's note: this letter was printed in the Washington Post on Saturday, April 21, 2001]

Ps II: [If you would like to send your own letter to the editor in support of our vigil, you may use the following e-mail address to reach to the Post: letters@washpost.com