The five men, Gerardo Hernandez, Rene Gonzalez, Ruben Campa, Antonio Guerrero and Luis Medina are hailed as heroes in Cuba. Charged by the U.S. government with spying on U.S. military bases and exile leaders in Miami for Cuba, the five were arrested in Florida in 1998 and were tried and convicted of espionage, conspiracy and other charges.

However, the Cuban government claims the five were in Miami to monitor the actions of the violent, right-wing Cuban exile community in order to protect Cuba from terrorist attacks. All five remained incarcerated for almost three years before their trial began in Miami in 2001 which critics say was rife with prejudice, media bias and even juror harassment.

Two of the men were sentenced to 20 years and three were given life sentences. Leonard Weinglass is one of the attorneys representing Antonio Guerrero of the Cuban 5. Between The Lines' Denise Manzari spoke with him about the significance of the appeal and what it means for U.S.-Cuba relations.

For more information on the case, call the National Committee to Free the Five at (415) 821-6545 or visit their website at www.freethefive.org.

The case of Terry Schiavo in Florida saw President Bush and Republican Congressional leaders attempt to prevent Terry's husband from terminating life-support for the woman who had been in a persistent vegetative state for 15 years. Public opinion swung strongly against the GOP's unsuccessful attempt to intervene in the Schiavo family dispute.

The Christian Right is currently engaged in a fight to transform the nation's judicial system and push for the appointment of conservative judges to the federal bench. Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council is the organizer of two gatherings of conservative clergy and Republican politicians dubbed, "Justice Sunday," the most recent event being held in Nashville on Aug. 14. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, speaking at the gathering broadcast nationally on TV and radio, branded the judiciary as, "unelected, unaccountable and arrogant." Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Frederick Clarkson, who has written about the religious Right for over two decades. He discusses the goals of the Christian fundamentalist's Justice Sunday campaign and their push to change the balance on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Frederick Clarkson's book, "Eternal Hostility, The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy" is published by Common Courage Press. Visit his website at www.FrederickClarkson.com

Related links:

• People for the American Way, www.pfaw.org

Cindy Sheehan's Vigil at President's Texas Ranch
Sparks Powerful Antiwar Activism Among Soldiers' Families

Interview with Celeste Zappala,
mother of an American soldier killed in Iraq,
cofounder of Gold Star Families for Peace,
conducted by Scott Harris

1,500 vigils were held nationwide Wednesday Aug. 17, from San Mateo, Calif. ...

... to the White House, in solidarity with Cindy Sheehan, who keeps vigil for her son at President Bush's Crawford, Texas ranch.

What began as a lonely vigil in front of President Bush's Crawford, Texas ranch by Cindy Sheehan -- the mother of a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq -- has transformed into a powerful expression of the growing anti-war sentiment among Americans. Hundreds of peace activists, veterans and families of service men and women killed, wounded or currently serving in Iraq, have converged on Crawford to support Sheehan's call for a face to face meeting with the President to ask the question, "What noble cause have our soldiers died for in Iraq?" Supporters of the President have organized counterprotests in Crawford. One 46-year-old man used his pickup truck to run over hundreds of white crosses, each painted with the name of a fallen U.S. soldier. The crosses were placed near the ranch entrance by peace activists.

The unscripted spontaneous movement that Sheehan sparked comes as public opinion polls find increasing opposition to the war. A poll conducted by CNN/ Gallup/USA Today found that Americans by a 55-44% majority believe that the U.S. made a mistake in sending troops to Iraq. Fifty-six percent of those polled say some or all U.S. troops should be withdrawn now.

Celeste Zappala of Philadelphia traveled to Crawford to stand for several days outside the president's ranch with Cindy Sheehan and hundreds of other supporters. Her oldest son, Pennsylvania National Guardsman Sgt. Sherwood Baker, was killed in Baghdad in April 2004. She is a co-founder, along with Cindy Sheehan, of Gold Star Families for Peace. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Zappala about the power of the Crawford protest and why she advocates a quick withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

For more information on the Crawford vigil, visit the Gold Star Families website at www.gsfp.org

Related links:

• Meet with Cindywww.meetwithcindy.org
• Code Pink www.codepink4peace.org
• Military Families Speak Out www.mfso.org
• United for Peace and Justice www.unitedforpeace.org

This week's summary
of under-reported news

Compiled by Bob Nixon

• One-third of Niger's population of 11 million people, mostly subsistence farmers, are hungry. Critics say the food crisis could have been averted if not for the government's pursuit of free trade policies. ("Don't Blame the Locusts," The Guardian, Aug. 12, 2005; "Niger Struggles to Find Hunger Solutions," Associated Press, Aug. 12, 2005)
• The Pentagon is moving in federal court to block new video depictions of prisoner abuse at Iraq's infamous Abu Ghraib prison. ("Fearing Backlash, Pentagon moves to block new Abu Ghraib photos," Agence France Press, Aug. 13, 2005; "Legal Papers Unsealed Today in ACLU Quest for Government's Abu Ghraib Torture Images," ACLU, Aug. 11, 2005)
• China's industrial growth comes with severe environmental and public health costs.("Pollution poisons China's Progress," USA Today, July 5, 2005)
  

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Credits:
Senior news editor: Bob Nixon
Program narration: Denise Manzari
News reader: Indu Anand
Segment producers: Scott Harris, Denise Manzari
Distribution: Anna Manzo, Harry Minot, Jeff Yates, Bill Cosentino
Senior Web editor/producer: Anna Manzo
Web producer: Jeff Yates
Newswire editor: Hank Hoffman
Executive producer: Scott Harris
Theme music: Mikata

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