Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, October 8, 1994 TAG: 9410100039
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-8 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE:
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Short
The march, following a three-day hunger strike by four Virginia Tech students, is part of a nationwide effort to bring public attention to the Peltier case, said Earl Blanchard, a local activist involved with the issue.
"A lot of people are getting in on this," said Blanchard, a Tech student. "There's an active Leonard Peltier support group in Roanoke, and the Native American Program here. It all adds up."
Peltier was at the scene of a 1975 shootout on a South Dakota Indian reservation where two FBI agents were wounded and then shot to death, execution-style, during a gun battle with Indian activists. Peltier was sentenced to two life terms in the murders, said Blanchard. Two others originally charged were acquitted, and charges were dropped against a fourth person, he said.
Several national and international organizations, including London-based Amnesty International, and individuals such as Desmond Tutu have taken up Peltier's cause, Blanchard said.
The Tech group is holding the march on Columbus Day, a holiday honoring Christopher Columbus' voyage to America in 1492. . The group hopes to encourage changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day, said Blanchard.
The march moves from Gables down South Main Street, and up the hill to the Mall and will end on the Drillfield. Speakers will begin at 5 p.m.
For more information, call 232-6784 or 951-0064.
by CNB