Carol Gilbert,
O.P., (born 1947) is an American
Dominican religious sister
A religious sister (abbreviated: Sr.) in the Catholic Church is a woman who has taken public vows in a religious institute dedicated to apostolic works, as distinguished from a nun who lives a cloistered monastic life dedicated to prayer and ...
and
anti-nuclear activist.
Life
Born in 1947 in
Traverse City, Michigan
Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, Michigan, Grand Traverse County, although it partly extends into Leelanau County, Michigan, Leelanau County. The city's population was 15, ...
, Gilbert was the elder of two children.
She was raised in a middle class setting. At the age of 18, in 1965, she joined the
Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids.
Starting in 1969, Gilbert taught junior high school students at various schools around Michigan. This lasted until 1977 when she started to teach at the Alternative Learning Center in
Saginaw, Michigan
Saginaw () is a city in Saginaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 44,202 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Saginaw River, Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township, ...
.
After 10 years of teaching, in 1979, she devoted her career to
plowshares activism.
In 1998, Gilbert and four other protesters entered
Andrews Air Force Base
Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force (USAF). In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form ...
during the annual Department of Defense Open House and air show. The group banged on a
B-52
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Ai ...
with hammers and
poured their own blood on it. For this, Gilbert spent 6 months in federal prison.
[ In 2000, Gilbert and two other members of her congregation, sisters Jackie Hudson, O.P., and ]Ardeth Platte
Ardeth Platte, O.P., (10 April 1936 – 30 September 2020) was an American Dominican religious sister and anti-nuclear activist. She was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 1999.
Early life
Platte was born in Lansing, Michigan ...
, O.P., illegally entered Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Space Force Base, previously Peterson Air Force Base, Peterson Field, and Army Air Base, Colorado Springs, is a United States Space Force base that shares an airfield with the adjacent Colorado Springs Municipal Airport and is home t ...
and sprinkled blood on a fighter plane. The group was arrested and held in a federal prison until the charges were dropped.
In 2002, the same group of sisters entered a Minuteman III missile silo in Colorado. Clad in white jump suits emblazoned with "Citizen Weapon Inspection Team," the group drew a cross in their own blood, banged on the silo, and prayed. The sisters were arrested and left on the ground for three hours. Their protest spilled over into their pre-trial hearing. Clad in full religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of clothing worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally, some plain garb recognizable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious Hermit, eremitic and Anchorite, anchorit ...
, the sisters answered the judge with a nod. At their trial, the presiding judge, Robert E. Blackburn, granted an ''in limine
In U.S. law, a motion ''in limine'' (, "at the start"; literally, "on the threshold") is a motion, discussed outside the presence of the jury, to request that certain testimony be excluded. A motion ''in limine'' can also be used to get a rulin ...
'' motion to the prosecutor. This prevented the sisters from arguing that their actions were legal under international law and the Nuremberg defense
Superior orders, also known as just following orders or the Nuremberg defense, is a plea in a court of law that a person, whether civilian, military or police, should not be considered guilty of committing crimes ordered by a superior officer or ...
. They were sentenced to between 30 and 41 months in prison. Due to their activism, in 2005 and 2006 Gilbert and Platte were labeled as terrorists by the State of Maryland.Martha Stewart
Martha Helen Stewart (, ; born August 3, 1941) is an American retail business woman, writer, and television personality. As the founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, focusing on home and hospitality, she gained success through a variety ...
.
See also
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Carol
1947 births
People from Traverse City, Michigan
Dominican Sisters
American anti–nuclear weapons activists
Roman Catholic activists
Living people
20th-century American Roman Catholic nuns
Catholics from Michigan
Schoolteachers from Michigan
American women educators
21st-century American Roman Catholic nuns