Robin Long, War Resister Deported from Canada, Faces Trial This Week

By Sarah Lazare, AlterNet. Posted August 21, 2008.

Three years ago, Robin Long fled to Canada rather than fight a war in Iraq he deems immoral. Just over a month ago, the Canadian government forcibly returned Long to U.S. military custody, making him the first war resister deported from Canadian soil since the Vietnam War.

Long now faces court-martial and the possibility of three years in prison. Meanwhile, another war resister living in Canada, Jeremy Hinzman, received a deportation notice a few days ago, and other war resisters in Canada wonder if they will be next.

The Canadian government's actions flaunt its long-standing tradition of providing safe haven for U.S. war resisters and ignore widespread grassroots efforts in that country to protect U.S. soldiers seeking sanctuary.

Long is a part of a growing movement of GI resistance against the Iraq War, and his case has been met with widespread support from friends and allies throughout the United States and Canada.

Who is Robin Long?

Born in Boise, Idaho, Robin Long was raised in a military family, playing with G.I. Joes and dreaming of one day joining the service. Upon enlisting in the Army in June 2003, the recruiter promised that Long would not be sent to Iraq. Long was excited about this chance to serve his country and finally make something with his life, and he headed off for basic training feeling he had made the right decision. "When the United States first attacked Iraq, I was told by my president that it was because of direct ties to al Qaeda and weapons of mass destruction," Long told Courage to Resist in an interview in January. "At the time, I believed what was being said."

Over the next few months, Long's enthusiasm began to wane. His drill sergeant repeatedly referred to Iraqi people as "ragheads" and led the troops in racist cadences. When Long protested, he was punished by senior officers and alienated by his peers. At this point, Long began to suffer a crisis of conscience. "I was hearing on mainstream media that the U.S. was going to Iraq to get the weapons of mass destruction and to liberate the Iraqi people, yet I'm being taught that I'm going to the desert to, excuse the racial slur, 'kill ragheads.'"

After basic training, Long was transferred to the nondeployable base at Fort Knox. Upon meeting soldiers returning from Iraq, Long was horrified by their stories of violence and brutality. Soldiers bragged about their "first kills" and showed pictures of people they shot or ran over with tanks. "I had a really sick feeling to my stomach when I heard about these things that went on," he said.

In 2005, Long received orders to go to Iraq. The only soldier to be deployed from his unit, a nondeployable unit, Long received a month's leave to check out of Fort Knox and report to Fort Carson, Colo. He was scheduled to report to Iraq a few weeks later.

While on leave, Long educated himself about the "behind the scenes" story of the Iraq invasion. He talked to friends about whether to go through with his deployment. By his scheduled departure day, Long had made the decision not to go. He skipped his flight and stayed in a friend's basement in Boise over the next few months. From there he caught a ride to Canada. "I knew that my conscience couldn't allow me to go over there (to Iraq)," he said.

Long spent the next three years building a life for himself in Canada. He met a woman, had a child and established contact with other war resisters in Canada. Long applied for refugee status on the grounds that he was being asked to participate in an illegal war and would suffer irreparable harm if he returned to the United States. Not only was his bid rejected, but Canadian authorities responded by mandating that Long report his whereabouts every month. He eventually settled in Nelson, a small town in British Columbia.

Deportation Orders

Robin Long found his new life in Canada to be increasingly precarious.

He was issued a warrant for arrest by the Canadian Border Services Agency on July 4 of this year, on the grounds that he did not adequately report his whereabouts to the authorities, and he was told a few days later that he would be deported to the United States. Long appealed the order, and his supporters rallied throughout the United States and Canada, urging Canadian authorities to let him stay. Despite these efforts, Long was deported on July 15, after the judge ruled that he would not suffer irreparable harm if returned to the United States.

Long now sits in the El Paso County Jail near Colorado Springs, Colo., awaiting a court-martial for desertion "with intent to remain away permanently," a charge that carries a maximum of three years of confinement, forfeiture of pay and dishonorable discharge. His trial is set for Friday, Aug. 22, and it is expected to move quickly, with his unit command hoping to convict him as rapidly as possible. Despite these grim prospects, Long remains in good spirits, according to Buff Whitman-Bradley, a volunteer with Courage to Resist who regularly corresponds with him. "He feels more strongly now than ever that he is right," said Whitman-Bradley, "and he is willing to accept the consequences, whatever they might be."

See more stories tagged with: iraq war, canada, ehren watada, us military, gi resistance, stephen harper, robin long, courage to resist, jeremy hinzman, corey glass

Sarah Lazare is the project director of Courage to Resist, an organization that supports military war resisters.

Liked this story? Get top stories in your inbox each week from Rights and Liberties! Sign up now »