FATHER ROBERT DRINAN, RIP

I serve on the Board of Directors of a large Washington-based civil liberties advocacy organization and there are plenty of legendary names on that Board. But when I first joined, nothing thrilled me more than when I realized I would be working with Rev. Robert Drinan. Father Drinan died yesterday, age 86.

Over 35 years ago he was an iconic figure for me. In the middle 60s many Americans hadn't woken up to the tragedy our country's leaders had dragged us into: a pointless and horrific war against the Vietnamese people. Students-- primarily because of the draft-- did realize. I was a student then and the Vietnamese war helped me understand politics far better than anything I learned in my PoliSci classes. Students were looking for establishment figures to support our cause. There were very few "adults" behind us when Father Drinan started speaking out. Much the way Lieberman and Cheney are yammering today that protest will embolden people who oppose their malevolent policies, Father Drinan's willingness to speak out forcefully against the immoral war, encouraged us step up the opposition.


By the time Father Drinan challenged the reactionary Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, a Beltway careerist Democrat much like the Bidens and Hoyers of today, I was getting ready to leave America and go live abroad. Father Drinan beat Phil Philbin in the primary-- and again in the general (Philbin was a Lieberman-like creep)-- and became the first, and only, priest elected to Congress. He didn't disappoint either. Scrupulously honest, he served for 10 years and spoke out loudly all the time. He was the first member of Congress to call for the impeachment of the arch Republican criminal Richard Nixon. Eventually the Pope forced Father Drinan to leave Congress. Barney Frank now represents the district. Please join me in saying a little prayer for Father Drinan's soul and a word of thanks to him for never being afraid to speak truth to power.