Cindy Sheehan
Cindy Sheehan
Cindy Sheehan at San Francisco Gay Pride,
June 2008.
Born
July 10, 1957 (1957-07-10)
California
Occupation
Activist
Website
Cindy for Congress ’08
Cindy Lee Miller Sheehan (born July 10,
1957) is an American anti-war activist whose
son was killed during his service in the Iraq
War on April 4, 2004. She attracted national
and international media attention in August
2005 for her extended anti-war protest at a
makeshift camp outside President George W.
Bush’s Texas ranch — a stand which drew
both passionate support and angry criticism.
She ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2008.
Early life
Cindy Sheehan was born in Inglewood, Cali-
fornia in 1957. Her father worked at Lock-
heed Martin Corporation while her mother
raised her family. She graduated with honors
from Cerritos College and studied history at
UCLA. She worked as a youth minister at St.
Mary’s Catholic Church in Vacaville, Califor-
nia for eight years, and also coordinated an
after-school program for at-risk middle
school children for the City of Vacaville. In
1977 she married Patrick Sheehan, in Nor-
walk, California; they had four children, in-
cluding Casey Sheehan (born in 1979), who
was later killed in action in Iraq.[1] Her mar-
riage ended in the summer of 2005.[2]
Anti-war campaign
Sheehan states she initially questioned the
urgency of the invasion of Iraq, but did not
become active in the anti-war effort until
after her son’s death.[3] Sheehan and other
military families met with Pres. Bush in June
2004 at Fort Lewis, near Tacoma, Washing-
ton, nearly three months after her son’s
death. In a June 24, 2004 interview with the
Vacaville Reporter published soon after the
meeting, she stated, "We haven’t been happy
with the way the war has been handled. The
President has changed his reasons for being
over there every time a reason is proven false
or an objective reached." She also stated that
Pres. Bush was "... sincere about wanting
freedom for the Iraqis... I know he’s sorry
and feels some pain for our loss. And I know
he’