Seth Manzel

Seth joined the Army shortly after 9/11 when the economy had taken a down-turn. He had worked at a gun store and had a family when he was laid off. Though he was against the war in Afghanistan and could hear the drums beating for the invasion of Iraq, he signed up for the Infantry out of a need to support his family. Seth was deployed to Iraq from 2004-2005. He spent his year there in Tal Afar and Mosul. His time there turned his academic objection to the war to horror at the idea that the United States could act in such a way. He witnessed torture, transported people to be tortured, and killed people who were fighting for the independence of their country. He worked in a detention camp in Tal Afar that was "unfit to house livestock." When he returned, he formed the nonprofit GI Voice (dba. COFFEE STRONG), and joined Iraq Veterans Against the War. He is a member of the Fort Lewis Chapter.