Fernando Suarez Del Solar was not surprised by the new Iraq strategy announced by President George Bush last week. Even with a new Democratic Congress in place, he was not very optimistic to begin with about the possibility of the troops returning home.
Since his 20-year-old son Jesus became one of the first casualties of the invasion of Iraq on March 27, 2003, Suarez Del Solar has dedicated his life to promoting peace over war. As director and founder of the project “Aztec Warrior” -- named after his son -- Suarez Del Solar has become an outspoken advocate for finding alternatives to the military for higher education. He also provides moral and sometimes financial support to families of fallen soldiers.
Suarez Del Solar has been a fierce critic of Bush’s policies in the Middle East, so it’s not surprising that he is at odds with the new strategy. After hearing of the planned deployment of 21,500 more troops to Iraq, Del Solar says more troops are not the solution -- on the contrary. “The only thing this will do is bring more deaths and terrorist acts to the region. It will become the perfect excuse for insurgents and extremist groups to continue their attacks,” he said.
When the Mexican immigrant began his nationwide anti-war campaign, he seemed to be in the minority, but not anymore. Every day, more and more Americans and immigrants alike agree with his notion that the war was a mistake and that our troops need to come home.
The latest survey of Latino views of the war by the Pew Hispanic Center shows that 66 percent of Latinos believe U.S. troops should be brought home from Iraq as soon as possible. That’s up from 51 percent in January of 2005. Only 19 percent favor keeping our soldiers in Iraq until the situation stabilizes there. One in four think the U.S. made the right decision in using military force in the first place.
Before you start saying, “If you don’t like the war, go back to your country,” you should know that there is not much difference between the views of native-born and foreign-born Latinos. While 68 percent of foreign-born Latinos are opposed to the war, 62 percent of Hispanic Americans are, too. Seven out of 10 Latinos think that the military effort in Iraq is either going not too well or not well at all, according to the Pew Center. That is not far from the view of Americans in general -- 64 percent share that opinion.
Yes, it’s a shift from the seemingly high support that Bush and the war enjoyed in the beginning of the military operation. That was right after our government told us that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction and was somehow partly responsible for the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Once the truth started coming out and the body bags started coming home -- although the media were not allowed to show them -- public opinion started shifting.
Latinos have always been at the forefront of our armed forces, serving the country with honor and too often paying a disproportionate price for war. The war in Iraq is no different. It is estimated that Latinos account for a little more than 9 percent of the armed forces, while sustaining around 11 percent of the casualties. According to a State Department Web site, as of the first week of January, 327 of about 3,000 military deaths were Hispanic soldiers and Marines.
Hearing President Bush talk about the mistakes of his original strategy in Iraq is a hard pill to swallow. A larger military force, the president told the American people, might have been more successful on the battle front. That’s not much of a consolation for Suarez Del Solar and the families of more than 3,000 young men and women who have paid the ultimate price for decisions made at the highest levels of government, and for the families of thousands more who will be risking their lives as a result of the mistakes.

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(Maria Elena Salinas is the author of “I AM MY FATHER’S DAUGHTER: LIVING A LIFE WITHOUT SECRETS.” Reach her at www
.mariaesalinas.com)
© 2007 by Maria Elena Salinas
Distributed by King Features Syndicate